so here we are: in the starting blocks of the season of thank you……and heavy carbohydrates.

before i pull my socked feet out from under my heavy, judgement protective covers each morning, i lie in bed saying thank you.

this communion of gratitude happens all 365 days of the calendar.

it’s my soul’s warm-up for the next 24-hour cycle of work and toil for my brain and heart; where limits are pushed, boundaries reset, and patience flexed and stretched.

 the blessings in my life are abundant. i try to not forget this fact.

here are a few i’d like to acknowledge:

thank you coffee.

you are my best friend, confidante, and therapist, all wrapped up in one welcoming, warm ceramic, morning ritual.

thank you wanderer.

the chance, even just the idea, that i’m a train ride, car hop or flight away into escape, quiets the rumblings of the tsunami in my stomach who’s always scheming to flee, hide, and experience life anew somewhere far, far away in a land of no one knows me.

thank you boots.

i’m walk taller with you.

literally.

you fortify me with a micro confidence which has eluded me through 31 years of body-hatred.

thank you date night.

this is when i feel the wittiest, the smartest, and the prettiest all week-long.

thank you pizza; specifically pizza on date night.

thank you active child for this song.

a great sob session is like a steamy, grime-cleaning shower for my heart.

finally i am thankful for the mess.

this is a new one for me.

i fear clutter, disorder, chance and spontaneity like some fear bees and spiders.

but like a sneeze you can’t suppress; the havoc, the muck, and the mayhem happen.

in these moments, when i am able to surrender to reality, albeit the sometimes unfavorable, these are the pockets of presence where i learn the most, love the hardest, and find my truest self.