At some point in the morning every day I’m at work – often right when I walk in the door – I sit down and write Ms. Boss a text about something I’m thankful for regarding her or our relationship together. When I started, I figured I would highlight one particular aspect of her character every day for a few days and that would be the end of it. Several months later I’m still going. Why? One of the positive lessons I learned from church is that prayers should be like finely ground incense – the more you break it down, the more you find you can be thankful for and such is the relationship with Ms. Boss. My day just isn’t complete without this.
When I’m in a less charitable humor, you’ll hear me complain about the trials and tribulations of having four daughters – they want this, they need that, they won’t do this, they shouldn’t do that. To hear me tell it when I’m in such a state, they run the range from mildly irritating to outright pains. Then come those moments, however, those golden moments where they accomplish this or finish that or do something that shows that we’re not bad parent last after all that absolutely makes the whole child-rearing thing worth it. I am thankful, so very thankful they are in my lives and I can call them mine.
I graduated from college in 1993 into what was at the time the worst job market since World War II. I moved straight from my college apartment into my parents basement and stayed there for six long weeks before someone hired me as a dispatcher – a skill I didn’t study for but nonetheless learned in college through part time employment. I’ve never been unemployed since. What’s more, I’ve been and around public safety communications – a profession I am proud to be a part of – for all but fifteen months out of the last thirty-plus years. The most important thing out of all of this is that I met ,wooed, and married Ms. Boss because of my chosen profession. To say that I am thankful for all of this would be a gross understatement.
I should be dead. Three times now I’ve made decisions that should have killed me – once in my twenties because I was impatient, once in my twenties because I was drunk, and once in my thirties because I wasn’t paying close enough attention. All three times I escaped unharmed in any way. No, I don’t want to talk about them. I dodged life-altering effects of medication three times – once before I was even born because I was lucky, once in my thirties because my doctor wrote a prescription but wadded it up before he gave it to me, and once in my forties because I was cheap and asked for the twice a day dosage instead of the more expensive once a day. I’m thankful that all of those situations turned out the way they did.
At 29 with a brand new masters degree in hand, I interviewed for my dream job – or at least what I thought was my dream job at the time – on the West Coast and absolutely crushed it. When they made their offer, I drew a line in the sand and said I would only take the job if they crossed it. After some back and forth, they said they would meet my demands, but not until the next year. I turned them down. The next summer I met Ms. Boss. What’s more, she shook up my mindset and journeyed with me down a path that led me to where I am now, a place I’m truly content. I am thankful beyond belief for that.
My life is rich and full of blessings whenever I take the time to stop and look and assess myself with a loving heart. I could go on and on about how I’m thankful, but this is where this particular entry ends. Thank you, dear reader, for reading.
