Thanksgiving…

I’m sure there are a couple of hundred bloggers all writing up their lists of reasons they’re thankful this year.

For once, I’m going to be a joiner, on this one thing.

I am thankful this year. I’m thankful every year, and it seems that every year I find some reason that I’m feeling particularly thankful.

This year, hands down, it’s the fact I have my Mom around for at least this one more holiday.

It wasn’t looking very good a week and a half ago, and the truth is, I really didn’t know how bad it had gotten until early this week. Mom was in congestive heart failure when she got to the hospital. Yeah, I know, we nearly lost her.

I may have really turned out to be a good thing, in a way. I called her nearly every night, and we’d talk until she wanted to rest. In the course of those talks I had occasion to tell her I thought she’d been not only a good Mom, but her and my Dad had led by example, not simply by words.

She paused for a moment and said “That was a really nice thing to say”, I said “Mom, it’s the simple truth, and I know you don’t like compliments, but you need to know this, and know it in your heart”

Well… it was emotional, sure, but it was something she’s really never taken any credit for. She’s been filled with shoulda, coulda, woulda done this or that kind of ideas for many years. She felt she’d been to ‘hard’ on me, that there wasn’t a need for her to be so strict. I’m sure there are many of you who know exactly what I’m talking about.

You see, I know though, that had she (and my Dad) been any less ‘hard’ I may have gone down and entirely different path. Hell, I nearly did anyway!

So not only am I thankful she’s still with us, I’m extremely thankful for having had the good fortune to have had each of them as parents. I didn’t know how fortunate, until I was in my late 30’s really and began to see, for the first time, some of the things they’d tried to tell me when I was younger.

I’m also thankful for my wife, who daily reminds me of why I fell in love with her. She’s had a rough couple of years health-wise, several operations and remains in a lot of pain. You’d never know it though, if you didn’t know her. I don’t know how she stays so cheerful, so upbeat and optimistic, day in day out, in spite of the pain.

No, she’s not a ‘saint’, and yeah... she has her down days… but 9 days out of 10 she sucks it up and gets on with living life the best way she can, without any sort of personal ‘pity-party’. In fact, when she is feeling ‘down’ she generally apologizes for it!!

She’s always; got an ‘ear’ for me to bend, tolerates my computer / hot rod / motorcycle / multiple project personality, finds ways to make me smile even when I’m trying to enjoy a good pissed-off, celebrates my successes and helps me ‘dust off’ from my failures.

I still find her sexy in a nightgown, or a pair of coveralls… all she has to do, is smile that smile she has and I’m a goner…

I can’t imagine it gets much better than this relationship-wise.

I’m thankful I’m working on a project that I really enjoy. That I have something new, and challenging to work on nearly every week, because to me, that’s why, I do what I do.

I’m thankful for those of you who stop by here, read what I have to say and share your thoughts with me. I feel we’re all connected, if even only by electrons and if I could, I’d invite you all over for dinner, I know there’d be some incredible conversations!

Last, and certainly not least, I’m thankful to be alive, (there were rumors of my death ya know) and to have learned how to enjoy each day the best I can. That we’re able to give a little back, to the community and those having less fortunate times again this year.

What thankful thoughts are you having as you get ready for the holiday?