Thanks #17 (Freedom)

I am thankful for freedom. This is New Hampshire, the state motto is, “Live Free or Die.” Taking the motto a step further, it was originally written as, “Live Free Or Die; Death Is Not The Worst of Evils.” I don’t know about the rest of New Hampshire, but I take freedom pretty seriously. Freedom, meaning by one definition, “The power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint.” What a tremendous definition, and an even greater responsibility. I’m thankful for the freedom, and the responsibility that comes with it. I know it’s within the definition of freedom to carry on as we wish, but we are better served by acting, speaking, and thinking respectfully, and responsibly. Freedom allows this blog to exist. Freedom encourages greatness. Freedom allows the human spirit to perform at its highest levels. Freedom is something we should recognize and appreciate everyday, and, by the same token, we should never take it for granted. So, as I sit here in my home, acting, speaking, and thinking as I wish, I am so thankful for freedom.

Advertisement

Thanks #16 (Shelter)

I am thankful for shelter. Psalm 62:8 – Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. God is my shelter.

I am thankful for the shelter provided by simply bowing my head, shutting out the world around me, for even just a moment, to have a word with Him.

I am thankful for the shelter of this roof and these four walls. I can be protected from the elements, here with my family.

I am thankful for the shelter provided by our vehicles, allowing me a mode of travel keeping me warm and comfortable.

I am thankful for the shelter I find in conversation with my parents when, for the moment, I can’t seem to handle the thoughts I muster in dealing with troublesome situations.

I am thankful for the shelter I feel when life is going faster than I can run and I pause in the dim of night shadows to smile as I gaze upon any one of the kids peacefully sleeping.

I am thankful for the shelter found in the happy spaces I find among the mundane tasks and jobs in life.

I am thankful for the shelter found in the gathering of family when everyone I ever loved or needed seems to be right there beside me, and we’re all on the same page.

I am thankful for the shelter found in the sad and somber moments when I take inventory of the things that matter most.

I am thankful for the shelter made up of sounds found outdoors that shortens the distance between the fast-paced now and the all-natural then. The wind whispers through the leaves, needles, and twigs. Water rushes continually somewhere out of sight but within earshot. Birds sing and signal all around. Somewhere a squirrel sounds his alarm. Then in other spots there is nothing but silence except for the crunch of leaves under foot. Oh, there is shelter here in these sounds.

I am thankful for the shelter I feel anytime I walk into, or around in, my boyhood yard. It still seems like nothing could ever have harmed me there.

I am thankful for the shelter I find when I stand in the black of night and stare at the sky, so full of stars, that it seems to fall down around me, holding me there as the warm remnants of my own breath visibly curl slowly away from me to leave that amazing view right in front of my eyes.

I am thankful for shelter in so many shapes and forms. Places I can go to regroup, or to weather the storms that life hurls at me from day-to-day.