And I am...

...very thankful this week, and hopefully all the time. We have so much for which we can give thanks. Since the kids were little, the tradition at our house is to say grace at the evening meal, and then go around the table and state a few things for which we can be thankful - guests included need to say at least one thing. I like to stay mindful of being thankful... it is so easy to wallow and get lost in the details and the stresses of day to day living... We are buried with riches from which many other people from many places around the world would gladly accept the things that we discard, or the crumbs off of our table.

I am so thankful for friends, and words of encouragement
I am thankful for memories of fun, love, laughter and friends
I am thankful for creativity, imagination, wonder and the joy at being able to share these gifts
I am thankful for laughter
I am thankful for caring, loving and thoughtful gestures
I am thankful for a text, a phone call, a warm message, just for the heck of it
I am thankful for the health and love of my family
I am thankful for the trip I took last month with my dad and my three brothers
I am thankful for my two absolutely wonderful kids

Amen... I am thankful for all the things remembered and forgotten, in my past, yet to be discovered, for knowledge, wisdom, and the ability to smile in the face of life's challenges.

I am thankful that for all the gifts that my dad has given me, his motto of "Every day is a good day, some days are just better..." will stay with me forever. He recently turned 81, and I am thankful for him every day...

What are you thankful for?

and so it goes...

I seek counsel and advice from many quarters... I try to listen attentively. I wish to be open minded and consider all points of view. I love to hear what other people have to say. We can only get better by absorbing all the information that we can, and by making informed decisions, yes?

I am conservative by nature - now there is a newsflash. Both in political matters, somewhat in religious matters, though I try not to be unloving and accepting as I can be. I am very conservative in matters of the heart, and having an understanding of me thusly, the rest of me is quite liberal, with, I hope a loving and accepting temperment, some who tries to embrace instead of reject, look for similarities and shared beliefs, instead of knocking down a person who may not think like I do in everything...

I have set out recently, to be more open to more kinds of situations, to reach out to people to see if there might be, somewhere out there, a safe harbor for this tired and somewhat cynical heart. I am still an agnostic when it comes to these matters - yes, people can find that life partner, that soulmate (tired as that expression has become...) - but I still do not know if there is that someone out there for everyone. Just because some people find it, does not guarantee it for everyone.

As luck would have it, or fate or whatever, I made that contact with someone. We had advanced those tentative steps, made each other laugh, had some things in common, and enjoyed similar things. We are not mirror images of each other, but that is not a deal breaker for me - I like strong independence, and uniqueness, and there was pretty to be attracted to. Talk of meeting and getting together... we almost had a chance this past weekend, but schedules did not quite mesh, but there will be other chances...

And so the venture continues. Still tentatively exploring one another - sharing our pasts, sharing stories, of triumph and of disappointments... it's all fun at this point. We laugh a lot, we are very open and encouraging each other, which leads to more sharing. It's all good. She got so comfortable with me, in fact, that she was willing to share with me that she would be willing to meet me, no matter what her boyfriend thinks.

say what?

Texting - it allows for creativity, spontanaeity but restrains one to limit thyself to 160 characters...


fountainblow4u: wat say u pour sum sugar on me?

heatseeker: Sugar? Not sure that I have any... could go to grocery store though...

fountainblow4u: lol u r 2 funny, not that kind of sugar... ur sugar, yanno?

heatseeker: Ok, I think I see now... we are talking of the non-dietary kind...

fountainblow4u: wud luv 2 add that 2 my diet, got sum?

heatseeker: Got plenty... how much do you require? (What does the recipe call for?)

fountainblow4u: I think I c now 2, you just a dumbass. Go find ur own sugar, jerkoff!

heatseeker: Jerkoff? I don't see any vodka in this recipe...

I should like...

I should like to think that today, with all its treasure and promise, can be a day as any other, in fact the best one, because today is the only day that we have right now.

I should like to think that laughter is one of our most important gifts...

I should like to think that the reality of any circumstance will stay with me, longer than the colors of pettiness and jealousy and other negatives that will try to stain it as time goes by...

I should like to think that my smile is a gift I can give freely, easily, and effortlessly, and that when I hoard it, that effort takes more energy than just letting it go naturely...

I should like to think that the love I have harvested is far superior to the love I have given, but that I shall go on giving it... and worry less about how it is returned...

I should like to think that sharing a smile should always be far superior to sharing gossip, or rumors or innuendo... I know, not as much fun, but still, so much more enduring and endearing...

I should like to think that keeping silent can be so much more rewarding than the alternative, regardless of how we might think we are serving the greater good by speaking up...

I should like to think, that there are times, issues and circumstances, that verily cry out for us to cry out, and being silent is the absolute last refuge of a coward....

I should like to think, that I just like to think...