30 Days of Thanks Day 21- My parents

I am so exceedingly grateful for my parents. I have the kind of parents I can brag about; the kind other people wish they had.
I grew up in an affectionate family, knowing I was loved unconditionally. My parents support me, they care about my happiness and well-being, they exposed me to art and music and different people and nurtured my talents and interests.
My parents taught me compassion and empathy and patience. They taught me how to read and how to cook, and most importantly, how to love. I can love other people freely and unconditionally because my parents loved each other and me that way. I can take risks in search of happiness because I know that I have the love of my parents.
Love isn't all you need, but knowing that your parents love you no matter what sure helps an awful lot.

Days 10-20

10. Cell phone.

11. Public transit.

12. A job.

13. Literacy.

14. Sunshine.

15. Fresh air.

16. Sleep.

17. Kissing.

18. Grocery stores.

19. Blankets.

20. Rain.

30 Days of Thanks 5-9

My weekend got away from me and I didn't update as I should have. So, without further ado:

5) Clean water. Not something we all think about, but we're very lucky to have regular access to clean drinking water.

6) The Library. All these books! And you can read them for free! Not to mention all the other vital services they provide for people.

7)A roof over my head. I live in DC, I get nearly daily reminders that I should not take having a home for granted.

8) Pleasure. I think this one goes without saying.

9) Modern medicine. Our healthcare system in the US is FUBAR'd, and modern medicine often pathologizes things it shouldn't (like pregnancy and childbirth). But it also keeps me from have horrible migraines 3-4 times a week, and makes many, many other people able to function on a daily basis, and gives them a fighting chance against diseases like cancer.

30 Days of Thanks Day 4

Vacation days.
I needed a new driver's license, so I had to go to the MVA (that's the MD version of the DMV). And yes, they're open on Saturdays, but only until noon.
So I took a day off, and the Gentleman Friend drove me there (another thing for which I am grateful). And got my license, and registered as an organ donor and a MD voter. And I will still get paid for the day. So, vacation days are good.

30 Days of Thanks - My Body

This is why I love going to the gym, because of the sense of peace and gratitude and love that the exercise endorphins give me. My quads hate me right now, because I've been doing squats, and I went swimming on Monday and did the stationary bike and rowing machine today. But I love them.
I am grateful for my body, even though it's not perfect. For the strength and endurance I do have, and for the way that I can build more. For my big hands and long fingers and the things that they can do. For my big feet, which give me better balance (and look fabulous in the right pair of heels). I am grateful that I do not have food allergies or chronic illness. Grateful for my body's ability to heal and to whether pain and discomfort.

30 Days of Thanks - 1 and 2

Two things I am grateful for.

1. Indoor plumbing. Hot and cold running water is a pretty amazing thing, and I am very grateful for it.

2. The Internet. Yeah, the Internet is full of people at their worst some times, but it's also full of people at their best. I have seen some amazing works of community and kindness organized and perpetuated on the Internet, and it always makes me smile, the way it brings people together who might otherwise not have anyone.

30 Days of Thanks - Grace

30 Days of Thanks
I only just found out about this today, so I'm going to write up a post I've been composing in my head for a while, and then move on to more specific things I am thankful for.

I didn't grow up saying grace before meals, but now that I live on my own, sometimes I do. Not the standard grace you may think of, but a moment to pause and meditate on two things: the miracle of food, and the chain of people who got that food to me.
I find that I am particularly moved to do this if I've been to the gym recently; the endorphins of a workout fill me with a sense of awe and love for the whole great wide world, which is one of the reasons that I like working out.

Anyway. I like to contemplate the way food illustrates the conservation of matter. Some time ago, two hydrogen atoms got smashed together to make helium, and in the process they let off a huge burst of energy in the form of heat and light. That energy reaches Earth where a plant uses it to convert water and soil nutrients into more plant. Which then gets harvested by somebody and either comes to me or goes to an animal who converts the plant into energy and/or more animal. Either way, it eventually comes to me and my body converts it into energy. Which is really really cool. What is also really really cool is the number of people who work together to make that happen. There's the farmer and the laborers who harvest, the people who pack and ship, the people who prepare it if it's prepared. If I'm cooking it, there's the people who taught me to cook, the people who made the pans I'm using. And the people who discovered and/or invented it. If I'm eating french fries, I'm connected to the earth, the sun, the guy who harvested the potatoes, the guy who shipped them, the guy who fried them, the oil, and the guy in Belgium who invented them. Isn't that cool?

So I like to pause and be grateful for the labor that got the food to my table, and also for the fact that I have food at all. I highly recommend it. Whether you believe in a higher power or not, taking a moment to reflect on what you're eating and how that came to happen can definitely improve your day.

New Year, New Beginnings?

I moved this weekend. I'm sitting here in my new place, feeling like the symbolism is pretty darn powerful. I was getting to be unhappy in my last place, for a number of reasons, none of which are really worth discussing in this forum. But the process of shedding that with the old year is really great. Not great enough to make me want to move every Jan 1, because I hate moving, but still good. New surroundings are always a great opportunity to try to establish new habits and behaviors, which coincides nicely with the idea of New Year's Resolutions.

But the thing I find myself really ruminating on right now is the gift of friendship. We're starting a new decade, and while there were many ups and downs in the last decade, I made some friendships that I hope will continue through this decade and beyond. And I rekindled some that predate even that. I have friends I've known for more than half my life. That's amazing.
And I'm feeling so grateful for those friends right now. Earlier this week, I sent out an email to a bunch of friends who have cars and might be willing to help me move. It was late notice, and a holiday, so some couldn't. But the number of people who were willing to made me happy. Even the number of people I felt I could ask was great. And it made me realize, again, how blessed I am to have the friends I do. I feel surrounded by love and community, there for me as long as I remember to reach out. I hope that the amazing quality of my friends is a reflection on my qualities as a friend. I hope that I have it in me to display the love, support, kindness and generosity they show me. And I hope they know that all they ever have to do is ask.