Wednesday, November 23, 2016

30 Days of Thanks

I could easily do another 30, but these will have to do:

The challenge is to post every day in November something one is thankful for. Every day is beyond me, but I’ll put it together in one essay.

1.       A dry roof over my head, even if it is leaking (I think) and needs replacing (for sure.)
2.       A job that allows me to maintain a decent standard of living because I earn a salary that allows the same. It’s not enough to maintain a family, but it’s just me.
3.       The freedom to speak my mind through letters to the editor, social media posts, and other means.
4.       Family.
5.       Jalen Ramsey, who won’t accept losing as a way of life. Shad Khan should fire Bradley now and put Ramsey in charge for the rest of the season for the express purpose of telling the rest of the team that losing is not acceptable.
6.       My students. All of them.
7.       Electricity. We take it for granted. We shouldn’t. Has Matthew faded so quickly that we forget how much we depend upon it?
8.       Good water. All I do is turn a knob in more than one room of my house and I can drink what comes forth. I don’t have to walk three miles to a bad well or polluted river to fill a jar and drag it back to my house.
9.       Dogs. (OK, cat people, I’ll give a tip of my hat to your pets, too.)
10.   Supportive administrators. With a few, maybe only one, exceptions, I have been blessed during my teaching career.
11.   An understanding God who always had a direction for my life and was tolerant of all the wrong turns I took until I arrived at the place I was born for.
12.   Freedom to worship that God openly.
13.   The ability to love. I feel sorry for ants, who do not have this capacity.
14.   High School friends, who should have gladly shed the connection after the walk upon the stage, but have sought me out on Facebook to reconnect.
15.   My van. Sounds selfish, but I really like it.
16.   Create Space & Amazon. I have a direct outlet for my work as a writer and publisher.
17.   Hats. Most of mine have now degenerated into the trash (hint, hint, Christmas is coming, family), but I really like having a good hat to wear. Not a ball cap, but one with character: think fedora.
18.   Doctor Who.
19.   My local IGA, since I live out from the concrete environs of the city, when I need a little something for a meal, I don’t have to drive 10 miles to get it.
20.   Amazon Prime and two-day free shipping. I can order online and it shows up on my doorstep.
21.   My USPS mailperson. Always cheerful and ready to serve. I don’t mind walking out to get the package because she works very hard and if I can save her a few steps, I will.
22.   The many people I have met in the writing world; few are selfish, almost all promote a fellow writer in addition to themselves.
23.   Skinks, newts, or whatever you call them. I live in a climate warm enough for these critters to find their way into the house on occasion.
24.   Snakes. Yeah, I don’t like them either, but they eat the mice and rats that I would otherwise have to deal with.
25.   Paxon School for Advanced Studies. (You know who you are, you gotta give me a like for using the name that you want.)
26.   Life itself. Health, a good heart, and a body free of cancer. (Not that I had cancer at one point, but you know what I mean.)
27.   One great nephew and a fantastic niece.
28.   Sunrise. No matter how bad or good the previous day was, a new one always dawns.
29.   Deep cold. Without two or three freezes to kill the bad bugs in the ground, we have a terrible Spring and Summer. I don’t like going outside in the first week of April in the middle of the day and being covered with mosquitoes and flies.

30.   Books.

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