This is a little bit late as I am well aware that Thanksgiving was a few days ago. Each year, around the middle of November, one of Lane’s relatives sends out a list of things for which he is grateful. More than a few years back, I tried to copy his endeavor but with not quite the consistency.
2010 will wrap up being categorized as one of the toughest years of my family’s life, all from a business perspective. However, everything else has been good and getting better and while we had to pay more attention than usual to the budget, it has still been a blast participating in the animated contest of freedom.
That said, here is this year’s list:
My Family – Not just Lane and the girls but I love and am so blessed by the fact that at my age, my parents are nearby and doing well, my brother lives in the neighborhood across the street and we have had some opportunities to do some business together and my sister is not just churning the wheels of commerce with her business, she has been in overdrive!
Sophie – While I most certainly consider Sophie part of the family, she gets her own entry because of the miracle she has been to me. I have heard that empathy is our strongest emotion. When one of my best friends shared with me his feelings on losing one of his dogs, I truly could not understand the depth of his grief. That was until we lost Coco. I made it about two weeks before we got Sophie and her miracle is filling the void that Coco’s death created…something I never thought could happen.
Music – My first memories of music was falling asleep to stacks of Eddie Arnold LPs on my parent’s Motorola. I learned to play guitar while John Denver ruled the charts and there is not a day that goes by where I do not pick up a guitar and play it, if for no longer than the time it takes to reboot my computer. I have put aside my lust for politics and have been listening to more music the past few years. I could put http://www.pandora.com as its own listing but will include it here. I have learned of so many new artists and have enjoyed getting to know their music through this great website.
Our House – Lane and I built this place as our first home, as newlyweds. It was to be our ‘starter home’. Almost 17 years later, I have lived here almost twice as long as I did in my childhood home. The house is definitely starting to show it’s age and the honey do list is getting longer but we have a pond out back where I go fishing with my girls, a screen porch that is surrounded by hardwoods and has become my favorite space in the entire world.
Phil Keaggy – No surprise here but I recently had the pleasure of being able to spend a little time with Phil after an intimate show at Nashville’s famous Blue Bird Cafe. Phil is not only the epitome of musicianship but a for real believer who exudes grace and love for those around him. His walk is an inspiration.
Coffee – Especially at 3:00 PM! (www.threeoclockpot.com)
Facebook – Yes, Facebook. I started out on MySpace when it was the bomb and did not really care for Facebook at first, mostly because I did not ‘get it’. My high school class had our 30th reunion a few years ago and it was a blast! I have been in reunion mode ever since.
Laughing – In spite of it all, I believe I have laughed more, on average, this year than the past several years. A lot of it has to do with our girls getting older and making their own contributions to the family humor stew.
No doubt there are tons more and maybe I will add to this list but a wife and a naked Christmas tree calls.
