Gratitude

One exercise that I practice is to try for a full inventory of my blessings and then for a right acceptance of the many gifts that are mine -- both temporal and spiritual. Here I try to achieve a state of joyful gratitude. When such a brand of gratitude is repeatedly affirmed and pondered, it can finally displace the natural tendency to congratulate myself on whatever progress I may have been enabled to make in some areas of living.

from As Bill Sees It

I woke up feeling good today; Romy was stretched out at the foot of the bed waiting for me to rub her stomach, her morning ritual upon awakening. She looks at me upside down and her lips hung down, showing her teeth. It's too funny, but I guess you have to be there. That's the time of day when she's most friendly, unlike her handler. I'm most friendly about noon then it goes downhill from there. But I digress.

Since an oldtimer kicked my butt the other day about my lack of gratitude, I thought I'd write my gratitude list to see what exactly I might find to be grateful about. Here's my list.

• There is a cardinal on the tree outside my office window, a bright red spot in an otherwise gloomy day.
• We hung vintage curtains a few nights ago and they look great. It's amazing what I continually find at thrift stores that other people give away.
• My s/o gave me all his change he saved for two years to put toward a couch. The result? Over $400. I was blown away. The couch, incidentally, is beautiful. The dogs already like it. I brought home a pillow to be sure the color works, throwing it into a chair. Romy immediately laid her head on it. That's the doggy paws of approval.
• The sun is trying to shine.
• I am healthy this morning.
• I have health insurance.
• I was able to finish an article for a local paper that was due and emailed it just in the nick of time. My editor just wrote me and still wants me to write for her publication, although her job has been "outsourced." (Welcome to America.)
• I'm taking Oz to the cemetary to play later. I love to watch him run and jump.
• I have finished the process of registering for graduate school. I should start in January.
• I have a few great sponslings that really brighten my days.
• I went to a great meeting on Monday where the topic was "judgment."
• I baked three loaves of zucchini bread (with some pumpkin since I ran out of zucchini). They tasted great and the dogs ate the skins of the zucchinis like they were steak).
• Thanksgiving is coming, my favorite holiday.
• The bathroom is almost painted.

I have nothing to complain about. How's your day?