Ten Things of Thankful

Sometimes sharing thoughts of gratitude on this Ten Things of Thankful blog hop post takes my mind back to kindergarten. Never mind that I didn't even attend kindergarten, but having been an aide occasionally in a kindergarten class and more frequently in preschool classes, I can just picture hands going up and anxiously waiting to give a one word answer. Of course, for the more outgoing youngster, or one who loves the attention, or has learned a plethora of facts from books the parents read to him, he might not be so willing to give a one word response. In most cases, the teacher likes both the short and the longer answers when time isn't a factor. So it is with the thankful responses. 

Thanks to Kristi Brierley, who is the current host of the Ten Things of Thankful blog hop, we have a place to link our posts. We can write in whatever format we choose. Posts can be short and sweet, or wordy. Although "ten things" is mentioned in the blog title, even that can vary. I enjoy the challenge of ten, but sometimes it isn't as easy to think of ten, without repeating the same things week after week. However, there is value in repetition, especially for the writer who most likely benefits the most from this little weekly exercise. 

Kristi has her own blog, titled Thankful Me, which makes her a natural for hosting the blog hop Ten Things of Thankful. Click the link to see what others are sharing this week. Comments on the posts are always welcomed and have triggered more than one online blogger friendship.

1. Filing cabinets which enabled me to fairly quickly to find an old 1920 map of Arkansas this week that I knew I had
It has seen better days, but it shows the town of Kimes and was most likely named after my great great grandfather, Valentine, commonly known as Felty. Being able to pull open the drawers to another filing cabinet this week facilitated the process of finding the necessary paperwork to begin proving mom's eligibility for Medicaid.

2. Recommendations from others led to finding someone to start the process of fixing the shed roof that was damaged by the windstorm recently.

3. All the myriad of ways doctors can see the inside of our bodies takes some of the guess work out of treating patients.

4. The repair and servicing of the tractor was done in time for us to have it back to do some needed outside tasks.

5. Memories of ancestors written by those who knew them and the official documents giving information about them were helpful when I was trying to write a short history of one of my grandfathers this week.

6. Notes on the calendar that were written months in advance to jar our memories of things that needed to be done, i.e. refilling a cell phone with additional minutes, and a note that it was time to pay and mail the estimated taxes which are due soon

7. Learning how to do things, i.e. sending a fax using our fax/printer
We have had the fax/printer for a number of years, but this was the first time that we had a need to fax anything. Although I used to fax documents when I was working, every fax machine and fax/printer are a little bit different.

8. A date with my husband to see a great movie, On the Basis of Sex which is about Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court

9. Saturday which allowed me a day to do work that needed to be done here at home 
For those who know that I have been retired a long time now, you may wonder why I couldn't just do whatever I want, whenever I want. Let's just say, that sometimes being retired feels like anything but being retired. 

10. Sundays, especially this Sunday which was a beautiful sunny day without a cloud in the sky
It has been a day of rest from worldly cares and a day of peace. What I enjoyed the most about today was being able to attend church and listen to some excellent talks given by members of the church. The topics discussed caused me to read and study further when I returned home and to ponder if and how these things pertained to me and how I am living my life. 

Poinsettia still blooming in January