3 Things I am Thankful For Today

Today I am thankful that I have all the money I need to provide for my family today, and enough extra that I am not stressed about the next month. I recognize that how "stressed" I might or might not be is much more about factors other than amounts of money in my bank account. It is also highly individualized. I am just thankful that for me at this time, although it is close, I am not worrying. Yet.
I am thankful for the opportunity to go back to school. I had my first classes this week in my Master's program at Drake, and it is exciting. It is also slightly overwhelming to be exposed to the amount of work I will have to do this semester, but so be it.
I am thankful for those who have gone before me in thinking, research, and understanding of the brain, emotions, and all aspects of mental health. There is lots of room for work to be done, but without those who have gone first, we could not even be here at this time. I am under no illusions that I would have gained all the understanding of human life I know now by my personal observation and study. I like books. I am thankful for those who have gone before and shared their learning.

Gooooood Morning!

Three things I am thankful for today: 

1. Morning sex. Not to malign any other time-of-the-day-sex, but there is something special about the morning.  

2. The plasticity of the brain. Not easy to rewire, but repetition and focus can change my patterns of thinking and fundamentally restructure stuff in my head. 

3. My parents who loved and nurtured me in my very early years. It makes a huge difference in the ability to empathize, along with actually being necessary for life. 

Quickies

1. I am thankful for my hot beverage (with caffeine in it) on a very cold Iowa morning (kids school is delayed because it is too cold...that never happened when I was a kid!).
2. I am thankful for my 1997 Infiniti i30 that is still running with 250,000 miles on it, and it is a sweet ride with a great sound system.
3. I am thankful for my friends who came into the restaurant last night and dropped about as much in gratuity as they paid for their food. They salvaged a slow night and made it worth actually going into work last night.

From the mouth of babes

Last night we had some friends over, and I was playfully arguing with my 13 year old daughter and the adults present about a movie she had seen that I thought was too adult in its themes, even though it was “only” PG13. I said something like: “It is just these married adults arguing and then getting back together.” 

She responded: “That didn’t happen, they never got back together. You only saw a few minutes of it. They just slept with other people.” 

“Oh, great! Even better,” was my predictable response. 

“Come on, Dad. It’s not like I’ve never seen adults argue about one of them sleeping around.” 

Do you recall that I said we had friends over who were a part of this conversation? Well, I take it as a good sign that after her comment we all laughed. But that incident reminds me of some things I am thankful for. 

I am thankful that our home is largely a peaceful place. Not that there is never any drama or disagreement, but the huge majority of the time, we all walk around without tension between us. And that is what I have always wanted home to be...a safe place where you can relax and don’t have to have your guard up. 

I am thankful that my wife has settled for something less than perfection when it comes to her marriage. Most days it feels like I have not had to make that choice, but she has. When I say she has “settled,” I mean that she doesn’t nag or make ultimatums about me changing. And this is one of the key reasons we are at peace in our home. 

And I am thankful that Andrea and I have been able to compromise between security and meaningful work. We have not prioritized security above all...in which case I would be currently compromising my soul and preaching somewhere every week most likely (not that preaching is compromising, just that at the place I was 9 months ago when Rechurch ended, I was not emotionally ready to be preaching every week somewhere, but it was the easiest way to get a full time job). Instead, I am working as a mortgage loan officer and starting school to become a counselor. Changing careers is not a path to easy security, but it is to meaningful work. 

Awkward Family Photo

Today I am thankful for the break in the weather…it is sunny and almost warm, and I managed to wash my wife’s car yesterday. 

I am thankful for our healthy kids. Yes, physically, but I am thinking emotionally at the moment. We found this goofy family picture from 2005 that we have been laughing about for 3 days. We think it is Awkward-Family-Photo-worthy. And we have just had fun with it. We are all laughing at ourselves and each other’s goofiness, without rancor. And that is pretty healthy. 

I am thankful I am going back to school. People have been asking me if I was excited for school to start next week (getting a masters in counseling at Drake), and I have been saying various versions of “well, sort of.” But I got a couple of textbooks in the mail this past week, and started reading one yesterday, and I am intrigued and fascinated, and I actually am excited now!