Thankful for the Basics

What are you thankful for this season?  I accepted the 21 Days of Gratitude challenge and wrote quite a bit about the things for which I am thankful, especially the little things that often aren’t thought of until you don’t have them.

Please remember the Women’s Shelters or Crisis Centers in your area this Holiday Season, and always.  Many times the people there had to flee, and have only what they are wearing.  If there was a crime involved, their clothing can be taken as evidence leaving them with basically nothing.

Most shelters are happy for donations of:

Underwear, socks, sweatshirts and pants, in sizes infant through adult.

Baby and infant needs such as diapers, baby wipes, infant formula, bottles, pacifiers, blankets, etc.

Basic hygiene items like soap, shampoo, conditioner, combs, brushes, etc.

Laundry care needs including baskets, detergent, fabric softener, etc.

New toys and craft supplies or things to entertain children of all ages.

Pillows and bedding for twin-sized beds.

You can check with your local shelter or crisis center for their specific needs.  Those of you in the corporate world may have party funds or “team-building” activities.  You may want to suggest using the funds and time to help support a local shelter instead of the other activity.  Whatever way you can think of will certainly be appreciated!

Days Nineteen – Twenty-One of Gratitude

Being a day behind in this and having only one more day until I promised to set aside a week for family time, I decided to wrap the last three days into one post.  I’m glad I accepted the challenge because it gave me an excuse to write so much about the things I appreciate in life.  Challenge or no, I will continue to note things for which I am thankful.  It was also a nice reminder to write here everyday instead of just when the mood struck.

I am glad I took the time to write some of the things I have and I may print and bind them for my children, as suggested by Lisa J.   I was also thinking of sending the link to a few posts to my parents, so they know how much I appreciate my life  and what they have done to help me and make it better.  Most of my family and non-internet friends don’t know of this persona nor of this blog.  I think I kept it separate so that I could have a place to write and discuss things that either I don’t want to bore them with or that I think might be upsetting.  I try to shield my family and friends from the cancer stuff, or maybe I am shielding myself from being asked about it when I am not up to thinking about it.  Sometimes it is nice to just be me and not have the cancer be the only thing on people’s minds.  I’m thankful to have a place like this and twitter where I can be me, and people know about the cancer, and I can talk about it if I want, or I can just try to get out the things that press on my mind about the kids or life that I need to get out, things that if I said to my husband or parents would just raise fears or walls or trigger the “it’s going to be fine, you don’t need to worry about that” response.  And while it probably will all be fine, I am still thankful I had the forum to get it out and off my mind so that I can be more free to enjoy and appreciate each moment of this beautiful life.

Day Eighteen of Gratitude

I’m late posting this by a day.  Oh well, such is life.

If you follow me at all on twitter you may have seen that I think my parents are the best.  Well, they are.  I am so very, very thankful for my parents.  Even when I have done things completely against the rules, things I never should have done and thoroughly regret, they were there to help me and love me through it.  When I fall (or life kicks me down), I know help is nearby if I need it.

I think they and my siblings would all agree that I have been by far their most challenging child to raise because when I screw up, I seem to do it with flair.   Even after I moved out, even as an adult, even today, I have turned to them for help and they are there for me.  I don’t know what I’d do without them.  And this coming from the one who is probably also their most fiercely independent child, at least I try to be.

I know they have sacrificed and given and taught me so much over the years, and each year I discover, or am reminded through my own children, even more of what they have done for me.  For example, they took us, and still take us, to Disneyland and Disney World often.  Have you ever taken a family of seven to Disney?  Besides the costs, there are all the logistics and trying to keep everyone happy, the whining, trying to get smiles for pictures, just keeping track of everyone, and no matter what, someone is going to be grumpy.   When I took my oldest to Disney years ago I was so profoundly aware of what a sacrifice it was for them to take our family as often as they did, and do.  And that was just with one child!  They took five of  us!  But that is something they do.  They make memories.  They took us all over the world making memories all along the way.  Because of them, my own family is able to make some fun memories, too.  They gave me an appreciation for memories over things, family over finances.  And I cannot thank them enough.

Day Seventeen of Gratitude

I am thankful today for a home to live in, a furnace that works and keeps us warm, the intact windows that block out the wind, the working water heater, the plumbing that means I don’t have to go outside for water or to escort little ones out for personal needs.  It may seem basic, but they are so often taken for granted.

There used to be an outhouse in the backyard here.  When my Grandpa was little he was a thin boy and fell into the hole once.  I remember him and my Great-Grandparents telling the tale of how upsetting and what a mess it was.  I am so thankful for simple things like indoor plumbing.  And even with that I have had more than one little potty-trainer “fall-in” and get their bum wet.  I can only imagine what my Great-Grandma must have felt to have a child fall into an outhouse.

So many simple things that get overlooked and unappreciated until you don’t have them.  Like my dryer or washing machine or dishwasher, which have all broken on occasion and we have had to do without.  Or clothes.  People can get so into what the fashion is or the label when at the end of the day, they all serve the same purpose.  I am happy to have the luxury of having enough that I don’t have to launder them each night for the next day and can go a week or more and be ok.  A simple thing, right?   But it is so overlooked today.

I think when you start to look at the things in your life that make this life easier and more pleasant on a very basic level, you can come to see how much excess you really have.  I am thankful for so many little, common, simple things.  I have been so blessed and I am grateful.

Day Sixteen of Gratitude

I missed posting this on the right day by about an hour.  It was a very busy day, and we did a lot of good, so close enough for government work.

So the assignment is to stand looking in the mirror and to write about 5 things I like.   Um, yeah…

SO today I am sooooo very thankful for the wonderful people of Twitter and Paypal and the Charity Smackdown folks who made it possible for Spirit Jump to win $2000 to help people fighting cancer.  That is huge!  My son donated and I am so proud of him for that.  He wasn’t asked, he just did it.  As did many other people today who donated to their favorite charity in the Smackdown.  I can’t thank enough the “big” names in the twitterverse who retweeted and got the message out to their followers.  I can’t thank enough all the people who donated.

I’m not a big person on Twitter as far as followers go.  With all the chatter I threw out there today and yesterday for the smackdown and the #beatcancer fundraiser I lost some followers.  I gained some, too.  I am so thankful to all the people who understood or overlooked the excessive tweets and still follow me.  I am so thankful for all the goodness that I found out there the last couple days.  I feel like we made a difference, that the world is a little better for our efforts, and for that I am the most thankful of all.