Thanksgiving...

This is MY list - a list of things that I am thankful for, and try to be thankful for every day...


(I'll try to keep this short, and I'll try to stay away from cliches, and I'll try to not be TOO sappy...but I can't promise to be totally successful at all that.)

• ...my parents.  Without them; a) I wouldn't be here at all, and b) I wouldn't be who I am.
• ...my little guy, who for his entire four years, he's brought out the little kid in me, amazes me every moment we have, makes me grow stronger and makes me think outside of myself
• ...my family, immediate and extended.  You help me stay real by reminding me who I really am; who call me out when I try to pretend I'm something that I'm not, or when I try to pretend I'm not something that I am
• ...all the friends and acquaintances I've ever had, past and present.  To those friends in the past who I've drifted from or who have drifted from me, past tense doesn't take away from the fact that our friendship served a purpose for each of us, and past tense doesn't take away the good memories from our time together.  To those friends and acquaintances who I haven't know for very long, I appreciate the fact that you see something worthwhile in me now and hope that our friendship serves a purpose that makes both you and I better people.
• ...all the special friends I've had for a very long time or are very close; the ones who have stuck with me through everything.  You are also my family.  You give me a place to let me guard down and you give me a place to feel needed and helpful.  I am very lucky to have as many close friends as I do.  There is not enough time in a day to spend as much time as I'd like to...
• ...my current and prior employers.  Though I complain at times, and REALLY complain at times, in the end, I do know I am fortunate to have been given opportunities and have been able to provide for myself and the above list of people, and more importanly, enough financial freedom (just enough) to be able to explore the places and creative expressions that move me.
• ...the concept of America; the freedoms that we have and share, the safety that we have, and the willingness of those in the Armed Forces to defend this concept.  There may be things broken in and about America, but this is the greatest country on the planet.
• ...creativity, and the people who have the courage to openly express themselves and share their inner voices, at sometimes great personal sacrifice, all to make the world a better kinder place.
• ...everything else.

And seriously, everything else.  In everything else, there is a lesson to be learned, an opportunity to grow, a step to be taken.  For every night there is day, for every rain drop there is a sun beam.  We can't have the good without the bad, happiness without sadness, down without up.  It is all necessary and it all serves a purpose.  And though sometimes things can be hard, and overwhelming, and maybe we don't think we can get through it, every moment leads to another moment and any moment can be the greatest moment if we just look for it.  Not every moment WILL be the greatest, but every moment can be, or lead to one.   There is a lot out there to deal with, but if we keep walking forward, and we keep moving, anything is possible, as long as we live.

Of course, I could therefore summarize this list into a single statement.

What am I most thankful for?
Life, and everything that is created by it.