I am always blown away by the passage of time. They say you blink and years fly by...it is so true. I can't believe how old my kids are. I can't believe how old my friends are....yeah, yeah, yeah -I can't believe how old I am too. Any how, this particular blog title shows the passage of time because it was uttered by my son a mere 25 years ago. He was sitting in his high chair while we were all preparing for the big Thanksgiving meal. He must have overheard us talking and said he was "thankful for peas" ( I should have known then he would wind up in the food industry). Well, my big obnoxious Sicilian family thought he said he was thankful for PEACE...."Oh my God ...did you hear what he said God Bless him" "I can't believe it, God Bless him" "He is so sweet, God Bless him". Seriously, the kid was covered with peas and they had him pegged as the new Gandhi. But that is my big, obnoxious Sicilian family.(God Bless 'em)..and I'm thankful for them, So in the spirit of the season, here, in no particular order, are some of the things I am thankful for:
I am thankful for, of course, my family and my children but I am also thankful for my animals. There is nothing like sitting on the couch and have one of my many pets come and plop down on my lap. They know when you're feeling down or if you are ill. They sense things, like when my daughter was pregnant, they knew not to jump up on her. It is uncanny how they know. They are so sweet and entertaining and dependable. I know every morning my two cats will join me in the bathroom and watch the toilet flush...their little heads circling ...they are like the "we are Siamese if you please"cats from Lady and the Tramp. I am thankful for my non human family!
I am thankful that after months of stressing, I wound up in a new position that really suits me and I'm in an office surrounded by wonderful characters and supportive people and friends where I feel like I can be myself...eventually. I am still watching my language a little and trying not to be too inappropriate. Oh well, we all know it's just a fucking matter of time.
I am thankful for Happy Hour where I meet up every Friday with my "girls" from the old school. People roll their eyes when we said we would stay connected , but a shit ton of Jack and Cokes later, we have. I am so thankful for these people and the fact that we make the effort . That is an amazing thing especially when you realize how quickly you can fall off of some one's plate. I know that everyone is busy and life has a way of moving on, but a text, a let's get together, a "how's your mom doing" goes a long way in my book. I am thankful for my friends old and new!
I am thankful for Bruce Springsteen. I am obsessed, I admit it, but when a song by the Boss comes on , I am 17 years old again. I have seen him over a dozen times, with friends, with my husband (who always says he will never go to another concert with me again...just because the ONE time they guys behind us lifted me up in the air when he played Rosalita. and the ONE time I teared up when he opened with Tunnel of Love) I have even seen him a couple of times with my son, which is so awesome ...but my favorite concert partner is my sister in law...who has seen him I think 3 more times than I have. One day we will finagle our way up to the front....I know we will. I am thankful for the faith that "there's magic in the night"
I am thankful for the fact that my husband's latest colonoscopy did not turn out like the last time. They did find a polyp but they did not call us immediately with that news that no one wants to hear, especially at Thanksgiving. I am thankful for no news is good news!
I am thankful for the "remember the time" people in my life, both family and friends. The time at the Taste of Buffalo when the old guy smashed an ice cream cone like he was Godzilla walking through Tokyo. The time we went to that church and there was like 100 bottle of maple syrup on the shelves in the rectory. The time we met those guys at Angola on the lake (yeah I married one of 'em) The time at the cottage in Canada and that Battleship game with that kid and how EVERYONE we knew came to that garbage pail party. The "don't take a year" ice cream story. That "AHHH Freak Out" Mexican Train game". The time we talked each other through turning 50. ...right down to the minute. Those are just a few of many times that I am thankful for.
I am thankful for musicals. Musical have brought me years and years of happiness. Starting with listening to Camelot, Funny Girl, The Bells are Ringing and Hello Dolly with my sister to eventually being able to sing the entire score of Jesus Christ Superstar( including all the record skips ). Musicals have brought me the best friends I could have ever dreamt of having. Sitting with the altos at 16, I would have never have imagined still having breakfast with these girls, being grandmas together and especially, providing the opportunity for other 16 year olds to find their sole mates. I am thankful that everything I know I learned from watching, performing in and directing musicals. How long does it takes to get from Buffalo to Fredonia? The entire score of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat .Thank you very much!
I am so thankful for this little 3 1/2 year old guy who calls me Gaga. I can't believe the happiness I feel when I am with him. I don't think I could have made it through this past year with out him. When things are at their worst, his laugh, his hugs and his little snarky sense of humor (already) makes me so thankful that he and all my kids, for that matter, are so close. Close as in where we live and close in our hearts. I am thankful my kids are so close to each other too. I was not close to my sister growing up but I don't know what I would do with out her now. With everything we are going through, our coffee getaways are better than any therapy session. I know she would say "the same to you"
I am thankful that after about 30 years, I was reunited with my friend Tommy because it was only a short time after that reunion that he passed away. I am thankful for that brief time and that when the temperature drops I will always say "Brrrrritney Sprears it's cold outside" in his honor. I miss him everyday. I also miss my sister in law, who was also taken way too soon. I miss her terribly, but I will always remember something she said as well. In her last days I remember her saying that she had the "perfect life". I was taken aback by that at first. For years she battled cancer among other things and her life was not easy looking from the outside...but to her, it was perfect and I don't think she would mind at all if I borrowed her words.
A lot of shit has happened recently, I laugh a lot, I cry a lot. I am hurt by some people but there are those I adore. I lose my shit more than I'd like to admit. I am sometimes so tired that I can't even see straight, but I will always stay for "just one more" beer. Sometimes stupid things like money issues get me down but I also know more that anyone that the best things in life aren't things....so as I prepare for an exhausting week of family and friends ..... I am thankful to be aggravated , overwhelmed, hysterical, bone weary, full of food, full of gratitude and full of joy.
To quote my guardian angel..,".I am thankful for my Perfect Life".....just saying
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