The simple life and gratitude

I am grateful for:
-a twenty year teaching career
-a sweet, loving husband
-Three loving children
-Cheri, Rob, Emilie
-a home that is paid for
-a car that is paid for
-a place where I can sing
-healthy grandchildren
-my good health
-a good night's sleep
-faith that all will be well
-family
-my sister, Patsy
-my friends who are more like sisters
-my brothers
-my Mama
-my Bigmama who was a sage to us all
-the promise that I, too, may have inherited some wisdom


To live a simple life is to take away things--just things. Lately, I have been thinking about that a lot. Gratitude is such a humbling experience. Several years ago I began thanking God for the income we had to take care of our monthly obligations. I began to feel happier and less burdened. That one little jesture of gratitude made those burdens more manageable. I say that prayer of thanksgiving every time I finish paying our bills. An attitude of gratefulness for the things I have (and I don't necessarily mean physical things) offers contentment to my life. It has taken me a long time to reach this place. I guess wisdom does come with age. I now understand the aura that surrounded Bigmama. She knew this secret.