My Thanksgiving List

Today is my 48th Thanksgiving on this earth. Out of all the Thanksgivings that I've celebrated, this has to rank as the number 1 year that I have so much to be thankful for.

Of course I am so very thankful for my family, my friends, my home, God and being an American. But this year I have some special things to be thankful for...

I am so thankful that God gave me the strength to fight back - to not let my enemies destroy me - mentally or physically. The battle has not only given me strength, it's given me courage and the knowledge that I AM better than those that have done their utmost to break me.

I am so thankful that I work as a RN and can find extra work when I need it. In these horrific economic times, I have been able to supplement my income in order to pay my bills without relying on someone else. It's been quite liberating to realize that I CAN do it.

I am so very thankful for my landlords. They took a chance on a beaten and broken (and broke) woman who had no where to go. This has given me the opportunity to grow and learn to live again in such a comfortable and cozy environment.

I am so very thankful for the silence and joy of living alone. I was almost as scared of this as anything else in my life but have come to relish the peace. And I'm no longer afraid of the dark. Thanks to a couple of close encounters with snakes in my yard, I'm even learning to not be so damned scared.

I am so very thankful that everytime I felt like throwing in the towel, God sent something or someone into my life to make me realize that I am a unique person with special gifts who is loved unconditionally. Little did I know how much a weekly game of Live Trivia at a sports bar would bring so much joy into my life.

I am so very thankful for the little things that I used to take for granted. A cardinal perched on my birdfeeder, a bloom from an Amaryllis that I replanted from my grandma's house, grass starting to fill in the bare spot in my front yard, a queen sized bed, candles, bill paying, going to the library, spending time with my parents, crawling on the floor or getting soaked with the waterhose by my grandson, sitting on my front porch, watching movies with my daughter, drinking a beer with my son, cutting my grass, washing my car, the list is endless.

Most of all, I am so very thankful that God intervened in my life and kept me from destroying my life and my family. If not for that intervention, I would not be able to say thank you and have my first peaceful Thanksgiving in years.