It’s 6 am, though I’ve been awake since 4:30 am. I wake up
around 4 or 4:30 every morning. I think it’s the curse of the middle-aged
woman. So I decided to get up, though it’s too early to really do anything. So why not pound out a few words for a blog that barely received any attention
this year?
It is now Black Friday – the Friday after Thanksgiving.
Yesterday was busy, as I was pretty much in the kitchen all day (and the day before,
also). Of course, I sat with my family for the traditional Thanksgiving prayer,
but didn’t really have time to ponder what I am really, truly thankful for. So
let me get a couple of obvious ones out of the way, then go on to others. First
the obvious ones:
- Family. Of course, family. No matter how dysfunctional a family one may come from, it’s always appropriate to be thankful for family. I am especially thankful, though, for the family I have raised – a quite stable family, may I add. Ed and I have been married going on 24 years. And Clay, Luke and Sam make us so proud, every day. Between school activities, outside community service projects and his job, I don’t know how Sam manages to remain a straight-A student juggling a challenging course load. His skills for time management are impeccable. I would have never guessed that a couple of years ago. Luke is about to begin his first co-op as an electrical engineering major at the University of Louisville. He’ll be working for the Louisville’s utility company as part of the transmission analysis team. I don’t know what that entails, but I’m sure he will be good at it. Clay is graduating from the University of Kentucky in a couple of weeks with a biology degree. He’s currently in a time of discernment, trying to figure out what he wants to do with the rest of his life. In the meantime, he’s a certified nursing aid at the local hospital. This job requires him to figuratively roll up his sleeves and literally get his hands dirty (in other words, he wipes a lot of rear ends). I don’t think Clay knows how much I respect him for doing the work that he does. The job isn’t always pleasant, and for a 22-year-old kid to give it a go for a little while (even if it’s ultimately not his intended career) says a lot about his character. So with my wonderful husband and three precious boys (none of whom have ever been in any kind of trouble, thank goodness), I am most definitely thankful for family. (Of course, this includes my mom and dad, brother, and all my extended family members, including my one surviving grandmother.)
- My friends. Yes, pretty obvious. Whether from my women’s meet-up group, the Jaycees, church, tennis, or anywhere else, I love to get out and just have some girl-time with my friends.
- Work. Another obvious one. I’m so thankful to not only have a job, but one that I like in the Patient Experience Department at St. Elizabeth Healthcare. This year has been especially rewarding, as a project I’m involved in shadowing physicians has enabled me to have a little more direct contact with patients. So much of the interactions I’ve watched between physicians and their patients have been interesting. On a couple occasions, when spouses admitted to the physicians that they could no longer care for their spouses at home, it had me wondering. Of me and my husband, which one of us will it be that will someday have to tell a doctor that we can no longer care for the other? It’s a sad thought, and hopefully it’s way down the road. But so often in healthcare, I think we can be presented with situations where it’s easy to put ourselves in the other person’s shoes. That, of course, is a good thing. I don’t know that there can be too much empathy in healthcare
- Aunt Millie. Okay, she should maybe fall under the “family” category, but I want to give her a paragraph of her own. She’s not doing so well these days. We had to place her in a nursing home in May, and while she is a nice facility, she is slowly withering away – sleeping, losing weight, losing strength, etc. She has dementia, often talking about her own dead relatives in the present tense. Obviously, it’s hard to see this decline, though it’s been gradual for the past four or five years, now. Still, I’m left with my memories of the vibrant woman she once was. The woman who was pretty much a grandmother to my boys. Having never had her own children, she never changed a diaper before my kids came along. Then she went to it like a pro. She was my number one babysitter. I still can see her pulling the boys in a wagon up and down the cul-de-sac at our Kennedy Court home. While we’ve been wondering for years when her time will come, I think Ed and I really think that this holiday season may be her last. So my thoughts are with Aunt Millie and everything she has done for my family.
- My quilting projects. I go slow. I have yet to finish a project this year, though I’m making steady progress on two projects. I don’t get to sew as much as I’d like, but I really like the quiet time when I do. It’s “me” time. I take my speaker and tablet out to my office, set the tablet to Pandora music, light a candle, and then spend the time piecing my quilts as if I was putting a puzzle together. Quilting takes much patience and perseverance. Thus, it’s bet not to rush, but to take it slow and steady. It’s a calming force, which I like.
- My dog. She’s my little baby girl. Spoiled as can be. And she knows it. Much more spoiled than the other two dogs we’ve had. Scout just has the sweetest demeanor. She loves me, though I think she may love the boys more. Too bad for her when they’re all at college. Then it’s just me and my husband.
- Internet shopping. I’ve been doing my Christmas shopping online for at least 15 years now. Love it. When I was younger I used to get into the hustle and bustle of the bricks and mortar stores. Now I just get claustrophobic. With my Amazon Prime membership and the free shipping, I’m good to go. Perhaps someday I’ll venture out again.
- The First Amendment. With such vicious attacks on the free press of late, I feel I need to emphasize how crucial it is that a free society have a free (and sometimes adversarial) press. This is one thing about President Trump that I don’t like (one thing, mind you. Not to say there aren’t many more things I don’t like, but I’m just going to stick with this one. For now, at least.) Thank God for mainstream media – CNN, New York Times, Washington Post, CBS News, etc. Fox News is about the closest thing to state-run media that we have (hence, why Trump pretty much only does interviews with Fox News, fielding total softball questions from his buddy Sean Hannity). Of course, we could completely evolve into a culture that eradicates a free media. I hear there are certain countries that do that – Russia, North Korea, Iran, etc. Wonder how it’s working out for them?
- The First Amendment, Part II: Free Expression. Part of the first amendment is a right to free expression. There’s been a lot of debate lately (instigated by President Trump, no doubt to distract from his own issues) about the appropriateness of professional athletes kneeling during the national anthem to protest racial oppression. Here are my thoughts. I love this nation and proudly stand for the anthem. I don’t doubt that those doing the kneeling also love this nation and want to see certain conditions get better in an already great nation. I don’t think it was ever a slam on our troops, the flag, or our nation in general. Just a peaceful protest. Peaceful protest is not a new thing. It’s happened quite often in our history. Remember the Civil Rights movement? Those who feel that kneeling is disrespectful have every right to feel that way. But those who kneel have every right to do it because it is their First Amendment right to do so. What’s not right is when those who feel offended think they can quash the rights of the others. It’s important to note, I think, that this world would be a boring (and dangerous) place if everyone went along with the consensus. Dissenters keep us on our toes. People should cool it with the uproar and seek to understand the opposite views of others. Anyway, I’m thankful for the troops who put themselves in the service of this country every day. And I’m thankful that one of the reasons they serve is to protect my right to express myself.
- My American Citizenship. All in all, I’m proud to be an American. Our country is great in so many ways. But it has its flaws too. Our political system is made up of folks who don’t really take the interests of the people at heart. They are more worried about getting re-elected. So their votes are up to the highest bidder (which special interest will give to their campaigns). The concept of a career politician is an antiquated one. Term limits should be the new law of the land. Just like we do for president. (Thank God.) Then, maybe when politicians aren’t beholden to special interests we can get some real progress done with things like gun control (I’m sure another mass shooting is just around the corner), labor laws (such as a real living wage) and healthcare (it should be a right, not a privilege).
- Finally, I’m thankful for my health. I think I feel better now at 52 than I did at 32. Other than a shaky left knee (a result of dislocating it 20 years ago), I think I’m in pretty good shape. I’ve lost a little weight. I do okay on the tennis court, and I’ve made a resolution to take up hot yoga again this winter. I used to get really depressed in the winter – seasonal affective disorder. But not so much anymore. I’ve found a couple of great things about winter – roaring fires in my fireplace, and college basketball (mostly UK Wildcats, though I like to take in a Louisvillle game too when I can). Oh, and I burn a lot of candles in the wintertime, too. Somehow it gets me through.
These are the things I am thankful for. This is pretty
much the big stuff. Every day I’m thankful for a host of small stuff too –
whether it be my food processor, the mail coming on time, a bargain I found at
the store or online, the dog curling up in my lap, a two-hour happy hour with
friends, and so on. Yes, sometimes I get down about things – not enough money,
too much debt, occasional lapses in self-confidence, etc. So it’s good to take
stock sometimes about what you’re thankful for. I’m glad I did. It shows me
that I truly am blessed.
