Thankful...Grateful...You Bet!

In last Sunday's paper, there was an article in the Work and Money section by a youngish gal (just starting out with her career) about, what, despite the ever present (in our faces) and seemingly prevailing gloom and doom economic situation, she was "thankful" for. Since it was in the Work and Money section, the focus was things like, being young enough to recover, zero credit card debt, having a husband with a like mind regarding financial matters, etc. (all good things, BTW!)

Well, since Thanksgiving is coming up on us next week, I thought I'd list a few things that I am thankful and grateful for; maybe to remind me (and others) that, despite what's going on, we're pretty damn lucky!

Family

Of course this is number one. Where would we be without our families? Our own "nuclear" family (spouses, children and pets), our parents and grandparents (if we are so lucky to still have them amongst us; if not, the cherished memories of them and what they gave to us/taught us), our brothers and sisters, our brothers and sisters in-laws, our cousins, their spouses, their children, etc. Yeah, we probably all have "one or two" family members that at times drive us up the wall, but, I'd take that any day over not having anyone to face trials and tribulations with; joys, special moments; in essence, LIFE. I love my family and I'm never ashamed to admit it and I probably should tell them this more often!

Friends

Our chosen families! Whether you have just a few close friends or countless ones, they are probably just as important as family. When we were in California a few weeks ago, I just had this glow of happiness the entire time I was there because we were able to visit with so many friends. My only regret is that so many of my friends live far away. But, they are reachable via email and phone pretty much at a moment's notice. We're still there for each other!

Health

Having had a bit of a "scare" last week (it all turned out ok) really brought into focus for me how thankful I am that I am, in general healthy, as is Mr. B and as are the majority of my family and friends.

General Financial Well-Being

This covers a lot of topics such as: Money in the bank (in cash!), very limited debt (mortgages), more than decent income/earning potential, time (we will likely recover from this recent fracas), both cars paid off, etc. A lot goes into this, though; "some" of it is "luck" but the majority is the way we were brought up (what our parents instilled in us regarding working, saving, spending), getting a decent education, having common sense and savvy, etc.

Home

Living in an environment you are happy with is so important. I absolutely LOVE our house, our furniture, our decorations; everything. I am proud of it; it's "ours". It brings me comfort and restores me (whenever I need to be restored). Yeah, sometimes our neighbors drive me up the wall, but, even they are "ok"; not bad people at all.

Location

I am really content living in this part of the country, and, for several reasons, am very very happy I decided to move here! As for the region itself; I'm getting used to it and quite enjoy living in a "smallish" city where I pretty much know where things are, it doesn't take longer than 1/2 hour to get to most places (and an hour for others); there are unique and interesting places to see, things to do, stores to shop in, restaurants to frequent; not to mention, the majority of our family is nearby (or within a days drive). How perfect is that!

There are probably more, but, my guess is they would funnel into those that I already listed (or more than one). Say, for example, the ability to travel could fall into health or general financial well-being.

If we stop and think about it, the few "broad" things we have to be thankful and grateful for turn out to be very grand indeed!

Mrs. B