<\/p>\n
This morning I woke up feeling grateful.\u00a0 <\/span>I had slept well on a good bed.\u00a0 <\/span>This is a great blessing.\u00a0 <\/span>I looked out the windows and saw trees and sky.\u00a0 <\/span>These, too, are great blessings.\u00a0 <\/span>My body felt well.\u00a0 <\/span>I was not sick or in pain.\u00a0 <\/span>This is a tremendous blessing.\u00a0 <\/span>I am alive and breathing.\u00a0 <\/span>How wondrous!<\/p>\n It\u2019s true that if we could only pray one prayer, \u201cthank you\u201d would be the prayer to pray.\u00a0 <\/span>How happy it must make Mother\/Father God to hear our gratitude.\u00a0 <\/span>How happy it makes me<\/i> to feel gratitude arise in my heart!\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n What else can I be thankful for?\u00a0 <\/span>A home that keeps me warm in the cool days and dry on the wet days.\u00a0 <\/span>A fan to keep me cool when it\u2019s hot. Air conditioning. A car to drive me from place to place.\u00a0 <\/span>Gas to make that car run.\u00a0 <\/span>Food in the refrigerator and a stove on which to cook it.\u00a0 <\/span>Fresh clear water straight from the tap with which to bathe, wash dishes and clothes, drink.\u00a0 <\/span>Indoor plumbing \u2013 toilets, showers, sinks.\u00a0 <\/span>Comfortable furniture. \u00a0<\/span>Lights.<\/p>\n What else?\u00a0 <\/span>Family, friends, neighbors.\u00a0 <\/span>Children, dogs, cats.\u00a0\u00a0 Grandparents, babies.\u00a0 People of all colors.\u00a0 <\/span>Trees, flowers, birds, bees, rabbits, deer, butterflies.\u00a0 Fox, coyotes, wolves, mountain lions, bears.\u00a0 Whales, dolphins, fish of all kinds.\u00a0 Frogs, bats, snakes, worms.\u00a0 Eagles, hawks, hummingbirds, songbirds.\u00a0 Cows, chickens, horses, pigs.\u00a0 Elephants, tigers, lions, monkeys.<\/p>\n What else?\u00a0 <\/span>The ability to move, to walk, to dance, to jump.\u00a0 <\/span>The ability to speak, to hear, to touch, to taste, to smell.\u00a0 <\/span>The ability to sleep, to breathe, to sing, to make love.\u00a0 <\/span>The ability to think, to wonder, to dream.<\/p>\n What else?\u00a0 <\/span>An education, travel, fun.\u00a0 <\/span>Trips to the mountains, trips to the shore.\u00a0 <\/span>Picnics, parties.\u00a0 <\/span>Work, jobs, the opportunity to support myself and stay alive.\u00a0 <\/span>Wonderful food, eating out, Thanksgiving meals, gardens, farms, farmers.<\/p>\n What else?\u00a0 <\/span>Laughter, hugs, kisses, winks, holding hands.\u00a0 <\/span>Candles, campfires, fireflies.\u00a0 <\/span>Oceans, rivers, streams, ponds, lakes, springs, wells, waterfalls.\u00a0 Rain, rainbows, snow, storms, thunder and lightning.\u00a0 <\/span>Forests, deserts, jungles, prairies.\u00a0 <\/span>Sunrise, sunset, clouds, the many phases of the moon, the beautiful stars.\u00a0 <\/span>Air to breathe, breezes to refresh, wind to exhilarate.\u00a0 <\/span>This Earth which feeds us with food and inspires us with beauty.\u00a0 Mountains, r<\/span>ocks, stones, shells, dirt, grass, sand, clay.<\/p>\n What else?\u00a0 <\/span>Joy, music, art.\u00a0 <\/span>Movies, books, computers.\u00a0 <\/span>My brain, my talents, my heart, my smile.\u00a0 <\/span>All the organs which function so beautifully and faithfully.\u00a0 <\/span>My hands and fingers.\u00a0 <\/span>My legs and feet.\u00a0 <\/span>Muscles, nerves, skin, hair.<\/p>\n What else?\u00a0 <\/span>Freedom.\u00a0 <\/span>The right to vote.\u00a0 <\/span>Living in a democracy.\u00a0 <\/span>Grateful that there is no war in my hometown, no horrible violence, no major crime.\u00a0 <\/span>Grateful that my loved ones are alive.\u00a0 <\/span>Freedom to worship how I choose.\u00a0 <\/span>Freedom to choose – no matter what I can always choose how I think, how I act, how I react, how I speak.<\/p>\n There is so much, SO MUCH, to be grateful for.\u00a0 <\/span>May I never lose the ability to be thankful.\u00a0 <\/span>May I never forget just how very blessed I am.<\/p>\n Thank you.\u00a0 <\/span>Thank you.\u00a0 <\/span>Thank you.\u00a0 <\/span>Thank you for every blessing.<\/p>\n http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=J5ZjrGdlNDo<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" This morning I woke up feeling grateful.\u00a0 I had slept well on a good bed.\u00a0 This is a great blessing.\u00a0 I looked out the windows and saw trees and sky.\u00a0 These, too, are great blessings.\u00a0 My body felt well.\u00a0 I was not sick or in pain.\u00a0 This is a tremendous blessing.\u00a0 I am alive and…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":553,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[59,57,3,32,2,273,54],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-295","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-abundance","category-beauty","category-blessings","category-counting-your-blessings","category-gratitude","category-thank-you","category-the-earth"],"yoast_head":"\n