Thanks

Thanksgiving marks one of my favorite times of the year. To me, it is the start of an entire season filled with traditions, good food, fellowship, and simplistic excitements. As preparation for the holiday season, I try to spend some time on Thanksgiving cataloging all the things for which I am grateful. I general keep this list to myself, for no real good reason, but this year, in a time of hardship, I think it would be nice to share the list.


I have to admit, my life is pretty blessed. "Blessed," I don't use that term very often, but it seems fitting. I remember the first time I actually rolled the word around in my mouth and seriously chewed on it as a way to describe my life. Italian, Little Clover, and I were grocery shopping. Little Clover was two months old and I had just recently lost my mom. A random lady approached our cart to tell us we had a beautiful baby and were a beautiful family. Italian and I smiled and replied, yep, we were pretty lucky. She in turn replied, no, we were blessed. What a short little seemingly inconsequential encounter in the produce aisle, yet her impact on my viewpoint has been profound. She was right, I do feel blessed for many reasons and I am grateful to her for pointing it out.


I'm blessed because I have a home. It's not the biggest or best decorated. A few things are in need of repair and some things are very outdated, but it is a home filled with people who love each other. We fill our house with lots of laughter, warm memories, small traditions, and a ton of snuggles and hugs.


I am blessed because I have a job, and not just any job, but one I actually like. I have food enough to eat, can keep my family warm, and have remainders to share.


I am blessed because I have a large extended family made up of blood relatives, people who have married into the crazy mass we are, and people who I've met along the way who are life long friends. I hope to let them all know how much I value them.


I am grateful for my blessings, small and large. Happy Thanksgiving.