31 Minutes of Thankfulness

Happy Thanksgiving Day!

I hope everyone gets to celebrate with family and friends!

I have about 31 minutes before I start to prepare for our Thanksgiving with Alison's father and family.

So that's how much time I have to do my version of the 31 days of Thankfulness I see so many of my friends doing on the Facebook machine.

So here goes!

1)  I am thankful for Alison and Benjamin.  We have a wonderful family, and it so comforting to be loved and supported.  Benjamin is very smart, polite, and a great young thespian.  Alison is beautiful and patient, practical and loving.

2) I am thankful for my two older boys, Douglas and Gregory.  Douglas just got married, and so I now finally have a daughter - the beautiful, intelligent and caring Ramya.  Gregory is living the family dream, working in Hollywood in the movie industry.  I couldn't be prouder of both of them.

3) I am thankful for my loving parents.  My mother, who passed in October 2008, taught me the power of unconditional love.  My father, who is 90, taught me more about responsibility and hard work, and about the true meaning of Christianity than anyone else I've ever known.  Even though he is in Michigan, I am thankful to get the opportunity to talk to him every Sunday afternoon, and to visit him at least twice a year.

4) I am thankful I have a loving, caring sister.  Carol and her family have always been supportive and kind to me.  It was a great pleasure to see them at Doug's wedding a couple of weeks ago.

5) I am thankful for my church family.  Grace Episcopal has been very important in the spiritual and social life of our family, and I am appreciative of the connections we have made and all the support and Christian fellowship they have given us.

6) I am thankful for my work.  I'm not going to pretend that accounting is something I love to do.  But my employers and co-workers have made it to be as pleasant an experience as it can be.

7) I am thankful that I have the ability to act, at least well enough to participate in community theatre.  Getting onstage and feeling the response of the audience has been one of the great pleasures of my life.

8) I am thankful that I have found a way to contribute to the betterment of the community and children, by contributing my talents and time to children's theatre.  I am particularly thankful to the Jeffords for all that have done to make the Flying Dragons Art Center such an important part of our area.

9) I am thankful for the friends I have developed through theater, especially the Becks and the Cooks.  Both Kimberly and Karissa have been invaluable in helping me with productions, and our families love spending time together.  And the children, Emily and Elizabeth Beck, Noah and Eli Cook, have been wonderful friends to us and to Benjamin.

10) I am thankful that I have taken the time to develop this blog, The Strait Line.  It is named after a school newsletter my father had as school principal, and whether it is good or bad, it has been a tremendous joy to me to get back in the habit of writing.

11)  I am thankful that Barack Obama was reelected President of the United States.  There are many tremendous problems facing the world, and I cannot imagine how they would be handled had the opposition won.

12) I am thankful that Obamacare has survived it's challenges and will become the law of the land.  Is it perfect?  Of course not!  But it is a vital step forward to universal health care and towards a more equitable, fiscally sound, and morally decent system.

13) I am thankful that at long last the gravest threat facing our planet, climate change/global warming will finally start to be addressed.

14) I am thankful that even though the progressive agenda may not be moving as fast as I want, at least the reactionary forces wanting to move us backwards have been held in check.

15) I am thankful that even in this radically conservative area, I still can seek out and find liberal friends to talk to.

16) I am thankful that I can read, and enjoy the pleasures of the printed page.

17) I am thankful for the DVR, that lets me watch the programs I want when I want to watch them.  And that I got to fast forward through most of the political commercials.

18) I am thankful for pets.  We have two wonderful dogs, Dachshund mixes who are loving and have long, waggy tails.  We also have a cat who is on rare occasion sweet, and two dumbo rats that are fun and smart.

19) I am thankful for movies.  I love storytelling of all kinds, and there is still nothing like going to the movie theatre.

20) I am thankful for continuing medical advances that help extend and improve the quality of life.

21) I am thankful that communities still come together sometimes to support neighbors in crisis, like with sick children, or suffering a fire, or other tragedy.

22) I am thankful that diabetes doesn't run in my family, because I like sweets so damn much.

23) I am thankful for the great joy comic books have brought to my life.  I have been a fan and collector since I have been 5 years old.

24) I am thankful for Christmas, and the opportunity to express such joy and love to others.

25) I am thankful for the peacemakers, all the diplomats and others who spend so much time and efforts to make the world a better place to live.

26) I am thankful for first responders, who often put their lives on the line for us.

27)  I am thankful for ketchup, the condiment of the gods.

28)  I am thankful for Cherry Coke, the nectar of the gods.

29)  I am thankful for colder weather, so I can go out sometimes without having to worry about the gnats.

30) I am thankful for God, and for love.

31) I am thankful for Jesus Christ, who resides in my heart, and  urges me to love god, my neighbors and do everything I can to make this a better world.

Time's up!  On to Thanksgiving festivities!