I woke up early this morning with a feeling of gratitude.

I have so much to be thankful for, as a human being, as a woman, a wife and mother, an American.  I sit here sipping my tea, looking all around me.  As an American, I have my freedom and live in a beautiful country, free to vote, to wear what I want, to choose the food I want to eat, free to do what I want in life.  As a wife and mother, I have a family to love and family that loves me.  My immediate family is small, yet the number of my extended family and friends is large and grows with each passing day.  As a woman, I am grateful to have the ability to bear children.  As a human being, I am thankful for my compassion, kindness and love, for my ability to think and reason and make my own decisions.

My gratitude also extends to the material world.  I am grateful for the home that shelters me from the weather, clothes to cover my body, furniture to sit comfortably, food that is nourishing and plentiful.  I read the newspaper and listen to the news hearing reports of so many people living in poverty, without food and shelter.  Countries are at war, destroying what little these people have.  There are so many who are out of work and don’t have the money for basic staples.  I do what I can to help, but the need is so great.

I glance outside at the green leaves of the magnolia tree, the lilies, petunias, and ornamental grass.  The sky is overcast in early morning fog, yet I know that to the west is the ocean, to the east are mountains.  Down the road there are rivers and lakes, waterfalls and streams.  The sun will appear later today, the moon will rise later this evening and fill the sky with millions of stars.  I am so grateful for this beautiful planet and this wondrous universe.

What are you grateful for?