Remembering Thanksgiving, Week #4

  This month has flown by - this YEAR has flown by, and it is hard to believe tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day..... and it is Thanksgiving Day, not Turkey Day.

  I unfortunately have to work, but my boss was agreeable to my working half the day because due to parts of the hospital being closed on holidays and not many people coming in; I won't be needed the second half of the day. Sure, it would be nice to have the whole day off, but I God willing; I will be home in time for the noon Thanksgiving meal.

On week four of Thanksgiving month, I am thankful for:

1) Work, since I am speaking of it. I wish it was closer, I wish I got paid more, and I wish I didn't have to work major holidays...... but I like my job. I have some great coworkers. It could be much worse, and I could be unemployed..... so I am very thankful for my job.

2) My health. Working in the waiting room of the emergency department, I see it all. There are a lot of people with serious and recurring health issues, and often they are younger than I am. Other than my need to lose weight, I am in good physical health; and hope to stay that way and improve on it this coming year.

3) My fellow travelers on the road I walk. Mine is not an easy struggle. It can be daunting and lonely to look at a future as a single guy in a world of couples who don't understand me.... but God has brought several people into my life via Facebook, conferences, and other ways who walk the same road I walk, who have the same struggles I have...... and they are a tremendous encouragement and help to me. I thank God for them and hope I am somehow a blessing and encouragement to them also.

4) Christmas. It is just around the corner, and once the Thanksgiving leftovers are put away; it will begin: the rush towards Christmas. I love the season  and am thankful for it. I am thankful for the sense of peace and goodwill that still hovers in the air, the times spent with family, getting and giving gifts, and what it is all about: the birth of Jesus. We would have no hope without that first Christmas, and I am oh so thankful for it.