Gratitude

For the

sound the ocean makes, and the way the sky and the dog is reflected in the wet sand after the waves break, making a downward dog doppelgänger who also enjoys chasing large flocks of shore birds.

imperfectly good health that grants me a daily run, if I make the time.

fact that even when life is too much, the chickens still require release from their shelter not long after sun-up.

three teenagers who are flying from my nest, one by one.

piano that once was the Leithold's. They owned the music store in my home town. It was middle aged when I was a teenager, and now I am middle aged and my piano is old and wise enough to play Brahms.

22 years plus with my best friend, who knows the words to every important song, and knows word-crafting like Ollivander knows wands.

memory of my parents.

one certain redwood on trail 10 that is my touchstone.

friends, silver and gold. Which totally makes sense if you ever spent a summer at Camp Ehawee.

fact that I do not have to spend every day worrying about Ebola, malaria, my next glass of clean water and what the heck that huge insect is crawling up the wall by my bed.

work I do, which is interesting, pretty useful, and gives back to me more spiritual mojo than you can shake a stick at.

endorphins. If everyone on earth just ran a lot, we would not have any drug addicts. We might, however, run out of deodorant and spandex.

smell of my dog's feet. Seriously, it is like cinnamon and nutmeg and pine needles. I know this because he often shoves them directly into my face when I am trying to sleep.

ability to live on the coast. Despite my midwestern beginnings, I seem to need the ocean really close by.

fact that it is now seasonally correct to listen to The Messiah. Over and over. Till your family starts making jokes about how much we like sheep (see below).

smell of the top of my children's heads.

quotes of William Osler.

books, music, movies, art, food, drink, travel I will experience, with no end in sight. Unless my plane crashes. In which case, I told you so! You know who you are, all those who quote me facts about the safety of air travel every second of the day.

metro card.

terrifying and beautiful and awful and inane nature of being human.

exhilarating feeling of knowing you are going to totally kick ass in this race (Go Tigers!).

heck of it.