Still so Thankful...

In 2006, I wrote the following thankfulness note. When I reread it today, I realized that while I'm still thankful for these same things, I have a few to add to my list. So, here's the original with my additions in italics.

I Am Thankful...

for a personal God who knows me and loves me anyway. ~1 Cor. 8:3 But if anyone loves God, this one is known by Him. NLT

for my security in Christ. ~Psalm 98:2 The Lord has made known His salvation; His righteousness He has revealed in the sight of the nations. ~ Phil. 4:6 Be anxious for nothing... NLT

for my husband. No, I don't understand my husband's theory of relativity, but I know my husband, and I know he can be trusted. ~ Elsa Einstein

for my daughter. Of all the haunting moments of motherhood, few rank with hearing your own words come out of your daughter's mouth. ~ Victoria Secunda

for my son-in-law. that video game playing, football watching, guitar hero of a singer who wooed my daughter and has given me (with her help) the most precious gifts imaginable--my grandchildren. "I'm just sayin'"~ STG

for Ava Grace. This infectiously contagious little bundle of energy who wins every heart that she bats her big blues at..."whoizit?" ~AGG

for Lilia Carolyn. The new kid on our block's giggles are unquestionably the harbingers of many future joy-filled delights.

for both of my grandgirls: "Grandchildren fill a space in your heart that you never knew was empty."~ anonymous

for my son, and in his honor:

King Arthur: I am your king.

Woman: Well I didn't vote for you.

King Arthur: You don't vote for kings.

Woman: Well how'd you become king then?

{Angelic music plays}

King Arthur: The Lady of the Lake, her arm clad in the purest shimmering samite held aloft Excalibur from the bosom of the water, signifying by divine providence that I, Arthur, was to carry Excalibur. THAT is why I am your king.

Dennis: Listen, strange women lyin' in ponds distributin' swords is no basis for a system of government. Supreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some farcical aquatic ceremony. ~Monthy Python and the Holy Grail.

for my daughter-in-law. Let me never forget that I, too, have been a daughter-in-law. ~ Sandy Broome

for my parents. A wise parent humors the desire for independent action, so as to become the friend and advisor when his absolute rule shall cease. ~ Elizabeth Gaskell

for my sisters. We may look old and wise to the outside world. But to each other, we are still in junior high school. ~ Charlotte Gray

for my family. Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family. Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one. ~ Jane Howard

for my true friends. But if the while I think on thee, dear friend, all losses are restored and sorrows end. ~ William Shakespeare

for my work. I long to accomplish great and noble tasks, but it is my chief duty to accomplish humble tasks as though they were great and noble. The world is moved along, not only by the mighty shoves of its heroes, but also by the aggregate of the tiny pushes of each honest worker. ~Helen Keller

for life. Life is a process of becoming, a combination of states we have to go through. Where people fail is that they wish to elect a state and remain in it. This is a kind of death. ~Anais Nin

In general, I find myself just overwhelmingly, extremely grateful this Thanksgiving. (still)

No, things are not perfect in the sense that one would deem perfection, but were that the case, this world might seem too good or too much like home. My prayer is that I never fail to be thankful, that I stop taking these blessings for granted, and that I always live in the awareness that everything I have been given is on loan and I'm just a steward charged with loving and serving. I have such a long way to go on this journey.

God, thank you for your patience with me. Family, bless you for your tolerance of me. Friends, keep me in your prayers for I fail daily. But know this, I am grateful for each of you from the bottom of my heart--at Thanksgiving and every day.