Being thankful, Day #22

I am doing my thankfulness blogs several days in advance, but i know this one will be posted on Thanksgiving Day.  In the United States this holiday traces its roots back to when the Anglo Saxon settlers shared a fall meal with their Native American hosts, to give thanks for the help the Indians provided in farming crops and how to survive in this new land.  They had successful fled religious persecution and they had survived.  Unfortunately things did not stay cordial between the flood of new settlers from Europe and their hosts.  But, i am not thankful for what happened to those who lived in what is the United States first, but for my salvation.  I cannot adequately express, in the extremely few words i have here, all that this entails.  So, instead i will share some verses from the Bible:

    For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.  (Romans 5:6-11 ESV)

If He had not reached out to touch me, just as Jesus reached out and healed the leper in Matthew 8:3... i truly shudder to think. 

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Being thankful, Day #21

This may sound unusual, but today i am thankful for a warm bed to sleep in.  Last night (at the time i am actually writing this) it came to my mind.  Now, like a lot of married men i sleep in a bed covered in a heavy blanket, which normally makes me feel like i am encased in a nuclear reactor most of the time.  I guess this is fair, because when my beloved and i bought this bed i picked the firmest mattress i could.  You know the kind that is just a shade softer than sleeping on a slate of granite.  Well, lately - ironically enough - this has been causing us both back and neck issues. Hahaha - anyway, i digress.

Having spent twenty two years in the combat arms, i spent a fair number of nights sleeping out under the stars (a fact a lot of Navy and Air Force coworkers delight in comparing on many an occasion), and one thing i learned early - and this really sounds counter intuitive - was that you need to get out of as much excess clothing before slipping in to that sleeping bag.  Why?  Because, if you sweat and it's cold outside... it's over.  There will be NO way to get warm again.  Well... ever stand outside in your boxers in single digit weather, only to slip in to a cold sleeping bag?  Not likely, unless you are also in the Army or Marines, or homeless.  Well, it is a stark contrast between the cold outside those blankets, and the warmth under them.  I am thankful for the home i have, and that i do not have to shiver to get warm, just to go to sleep at night.

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Being thankful, Day #20

I know the foundations of the internet were laid back in the 1960's, but it really blossomed into the gargantuan information super highway it is today during the mid '90's.  I know there are a lot of things out there that a 'good Christian boy' should avoid, and to be honest - i've not always done a very good job at it, but it has really become an invaluable tool.  Not a day goes by that i am not researching something on it, or just listening to music on it.

I have made friends that i have never met in real life.  I have had a chance to talk to people from other cultures, other faiths, that i could never afford to go to in person.  It has allowed me to enjoy music that i enjoy anywhere i go.  It

Think about it.  Today it carries shopping orders, carries music and television.  Information on most any subject can be found (but should always be verified) on the "web".  While it can be a time-hog, the internet is going to go down in history as one of the world changing inventions like the lightbulb and internal combustion engine.  I am thankful for the internet because it is a foundation of my career, and it is an excellent resource for both my personal and business life - even if it is a contributor to my ADD.

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Being thankful, Day #19

Music has long been a balm to my well being.  To my emotionally, to my general well being, and to my soul.  At a young age i remember listening to it in the background of doing other things.  My mother would often play Neil Diamond or some other such record when she was home.  She also had a Country and a Bluegrass phase.  For the times i was with her in the pubs i remember a lot of Country and a lot of what is considered 'Classic Rock' - which today seems to have a steady rate of appreciation.  I had a long time interest in the band KISS, which i no longer seem to appreciate nearly as much.  I also enjoyed Leonard Skynard, Poison, Guns and Roses, Billy Joel, (all not nearly as much as my brother did).  I tried Country myself for a while.  I enjoyed it, but it didn't stick.  Then the '90's came and i was pretty much left behind in the 'Pop' music scene.  By then i was pretty involved in church, etc. and while 'secular' music was never shunned or discouraged, i just didn't have a taste for it.  At that time i really enjoyed the praise and worship songs being played at the church i was going to.

My tastes are pretty much all over the place now, but i prefer instrumental pieces over those with lyrics.  If it has a violin and a flute it will almost always be enjoyed by myself.  I also like piano and bag pipes. :)

Today, i am thankful for the gift of music.  When i listen to it, it just helps me cope with the noise of the world.

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Being thankful, Day #18

For my blog today i would like to share my thankful for my Beloved's job and career.  When we first met, she was in her senior year of college and i was a carpenter's apprentice.  We met, fell in love, and got married.  Early on she agreed to support me as i tried to attend college and get in to a viable career (i.e. one that i would not wear my body out too soon, and still be able to provide for our family).  She was an assistant manager for a fast food chain for awhile before she became a caterer - a job which she loves.  Well, i never did complete college.  I have over 60 credits, but when DS1 came along and i was trying to carry a full credit load, and work full time, it just didn't work out.  Well, she wanted to stay home with the children when DS1 (and subsequently DS2 and DD3), and i fully supported her in this choice. She stayed home until DD3 was in school all day.  She was beginning to get buggy and needed more outside interaction.  She had friends, fellow mothers, but she needed something a little more.  By God's grace she went back to the exact same job she left, which was her ideal job and she loves it.

We have been through a lot since she left the work force to be a SAHM.  The adjustment for our first child, new home owners, struggles with figuring out why DS2 was the way he was, my deployment, a diagnosis of Cystic Fibrosis for DD3, and all the other things that go on with raising children and a husband who is in the military (even with me being in the reserves).  When she needed the challenge she was able to go back to doing things that she loved.  By God's grace we have not needed her to return to the work force, but it has been such a blessing.  She feels challenged, she is able to see her work bring about success and approval for her clients.  It has also been able to provide a buffer during this time of recession.  It may cause me some consternation to be so busy during this season of life, i can honestly say that it has improved our life together over all.  We may not know what the future holds, but i know we are happy with how things have turned out so far.

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Being thankful, Day #17

Today, i am going to share how i am thankful for my Tilley.  I know, this is a little silly, but today is the last day of the Fall soccer season for me and my family, and i am sort of known for wearing "The Hat".  Maybe it was in the military i grew used to wearing a hat, but i have found that hats are extremely handy.  A brim is great to keep the sun out of your eyes, or from getting a sunburn on my neck.  The problem with baseball style hats is that the brim is only partially useful, it can only point in one direction at time so if you want to use it for both the next and eyes, you have to keep flipping it back and forth.  I have a similar problem with the sun visor in my car, but i digress. Hats are also really useful to keeping one warm in the winter, and cool in the summer.  It also has a huge feature that an eyeglass wearer like me really needs, a cover to keep the glasses without spots in the rain.I am not sure my Beloved gets it though.    I wear the hat, pretty much any time we are going to be outside for more than a few minutes.  So, i wear it anytime i am at one of our children's soccer games.

I bought it when she went in to the hospital for gallbladder incident. I had been on the fence for a while, especially because Tilley Hats can be a tad pricey compared to the hats more easily available, but i assure you they are well worth the difference.  I first heard about Tilley when i was at Hershey Park, but a woman who owned one.  The hats are guaranteed for manufacturing defects for life, and insured for loss for up to two years.  If you lose your treasured possession in the first two years after your purchase - for any reason - you can purchase another at half the cost.

I purchased the LTM06 AirFlo design and have never regretted it.  In the winter it keeps my head warm (even with the air flow vents), in the summer it keeps me very cool - and when i really need a boost - i stash ice in the pocket and let it melt (another trick i learned in the Army), the all around brim keeps the sun (and rain) out of my eyes and off of my neck and ears.  I love my Tilley. If it gets sweaty and dirty, i just hand wash it and let it air dry. I told my Beloved, "we've been married twenty years, but you are just going to have to get used to it".   Because the hat plays.

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Being thankful, Day #16

Today i am remembering a period of my life where i had a dog.  I was in High School, i had a paper route, and a few friends, but... Spaz was my best friend.  He was always there for me - despite, in hindsight, i was not the best dog owner.  We would play a lot, he would come with me on my paper route and keep me company.  He was a great dog.  A Welsch Corgi. When we were out on the paper route he would never bark.  Even when the dogs inside the houses would go insane.

Now, i don't want to get a dog, mostly because i don't want to be the only one to take care of it, and i am nervous how i would feel when (s)he would get old and pass on.  Still, i still am very thankful to have had those years with Lord Spastic of Grinbin.  He is missed.

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