And just like that, we’re at the pointy end of the year.

Suddenly, the shops are filled with tinsel, Mariah Carey is making her annual comeback and those who know are warming up for Whamageddon 2022.

The time between holiday seasons seem to get shorter and shorter which means it’s even more important to take a beat and reflect on the moments we’re grateful for this year.

R O B E R T

This year, I have an incredible amount to be thankful for.  Cogniom celebrated its fourth birthday.  The company has a lot of upcoming opportunities and I’m excited to see where it will lead in 2023. I’ve been fortunate to grow a tighter circle of family and friends this year as well.

This month through the generosity from friends and loved ones, I’m back home to help celebrate my dad’s 75^th birthday and Thanksgiving the first time in seven years. 

The biggest blessings I’m thankful for are: the feeling of my mom’s hug, the warm smile and tears when we saw each other at the airport gate, the walk by my dad’s side while discussing stories through playful banter, the astonishment at my now much taller nieces, and the time reconnecting with my brothers. 

I truly admire my dad for his good attitude and levity.  He never lets his frustration show when he fights to remember the words he wants to communicate.  Despite a declining cognitive ability to express himself, he will always be one of the smartest men I’ve known.  Singing happy birthday and comfortably enjoying the same experiences, food, and jokes in each other’s company again was surreal.  The words may be more difficult for him now, but his sentiment and message are easy to understand, even if they aren’t always verbal.  Luckily I’m finally here in person to receive them. 

Time is incredibly short.  Choose the metrics and values you believe will make you feel accomplished and satisfied in life and never stop working for them. 

These are the missing pieces from a Zoom call. 

We’re more fortunate than ever that we can call and talk to anybody over Zoom at any time. We can transcend boundaries, even with the global pandemic, and always maintain a connection with people that we love.  But there is still something missing.  The feeling of being an active participant with family during the holidays helps tear down the walls of isolation.  We are enjoying the same experiences, eating the same food, having good laughs, easy conversations, and random hugs.

Being comfortable in the white spaces between conversations and not having to desperately come up with stories or things to fill the radio silence and the spaces in between. There is an easy and effortless connection that comes from simply being in someone’s presence. Silently sitting next to somebody, helping make a meal, and sharing a knowing smile is what I’m thankful for this year – and especially for the generosity of friends that gifted it to me.

I’m thankful for the time I have with each of them and the small spaces that exist in life that truly matter.

I have so much to look forward to. Including the cranberry sauce.

B R Y C E

Sometimes the Startup path is a LONG road, and as Gary V. recently posted in Linked In, the key to weathering it often just comes down to patience. Patience to me means the ability to ignore short term loss for the benefit of the long-term vision. It also means enjoying the roses and bumps on the road because you know they’re part of getting where you want to be.

Not everything is the way I would wish it, if everything were perfect it would be a boring ride! The journey is long and arduous and as a result my growth on the path has been huge. And so, I am thankful for the difficulties of the journey, because each hill conquered is an achievement unto itself. But if 2023 wants to be a smoother ride, I won’t complain either!

Z O E

Over the last few weeks I have been thinking about the things I am grateful for this year and what I would include in my annual Cogniom blurb. As I began to write earlier this week, tragedy struck my family. My cousin at just 36, taken out by a cardiac event. 

While I sit, mostly in disbelief, trying to figure out what emotion to feel first, I hear my grandmother’s voice telling me “There is always a silver lining”.

Losing a loved one always puts you into a reflective mindset, remembering all the times you shared together as you try to commit their laugh, their face and their mannerisms to memory forever. For me in this moment I remember Steven’s crude sense of humour, his massive hugs that would knock air out of your lungs, his unconditional love and how proud he was of his greatest achievement – his son.

Through tragedy we are reminded of how precious these moments are. Of how short our time is here, and so I am grateful for that reminder today. I am grateful for the memories I have, and grateful for the memories I will still be able to make. I’m grateful to be reminded to stop and smell the roses, to be present in each moment and to surround yourself with people who love and support you right back.

In the words of A. A. Milne “How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.”  (Winnie-the-Pooh)