Things I am grateful for in the new year...

I sometimes get really down -- especially when I am feeling the weight of the responsibilities I have. However, Fraulein Maria was not wrong when she thinks of her favorite things (Sound of Music- Stay with me here) Then she doesn't feel so bad. So I wanted to list a few of my favorite things here on my blog.
My wife. -- OK she is not a thing. But whenever I think of my blessings She is the first to pop into my mind every time.
My kids. -- They pop up too anytime I think of my wife. Honestly it is hard to separate the two and rarely would I ever want to.
The Gospel -- This is what makes the love I have for my wife and kids relevant in almost any context. They are a part of me and I am a part of them and the Gospel of Salvation enables that.
My Job -- I am more than glad to be able to pay my bills and meet my responsibilities. It is often hard to see what it is that I am actually doing with my life unless I see the benefits of what I do for my job... which leads me to...
Family History -- I have learned so much about my family and the families of others that I understand more and more about who I am and why I am the way I am. So many personalities went into making me I am always curious about where it all comes from. Then I read about them! and I wonder where they got it.
Friends -- I have many friends that is to say those who do not actively try to destroy me. Then I have closer friends who make an effort to make me, my family, and my life a good one. Then I have those precious few who I can open up to and they do their best to try to help me sort through it all and find a clear answer. They are to me like family.
Work -- Yes I am grateful for work. This is beyond a job, as I have already covered that. Work is the stuff that allows me to act upon my surroundings and create my world the way I want it. However without hard and strenuous work, it will all eventually slide down that slippery slope of entropy till it becomes ... well... like my daughters bedroom -- a disaster!
Hope -- Now this is not really a thing either. However it is the drive to keep going despite all of the struggles, the setbacks, and the failures. Speaking of which...
My Failures -- Yes I am grateful for them too. However failures are not bad. Failures are the charred remains of honest attempts of someone trying to do something. Doing nothing and letting the world happen around you because of the fear of failure. That is bad.
Spell checkers. just sayin'.
My car -- It would be a very long walk to work without it.
My bed -- I sleep much easier on the bed than under it. (Ask me later)
My home -- I have been very nearly without one a number of times. Having walls in which to retreat out of the cold is a good thing.
Food -- Me likes to eat.
Humor -- I need it. It is like blood to me.
Root Beer -- Check that. ROOT BEER is like blood to me.
Idle thought time -- I need a few minutes a few times a day to let my brain get out and wander around a bit. I can get really creative with stories, and imaginations when it gets a chance to breathe.
Music -- Music is the perfume for the ears. I feel music all the time and when I listen to it I can feel it course through me. Energizing and uplifting as well as calming and soothing. Music is powerful and unlike math, it can go beyond numbers. Unlike language, it can speak lifetimes without words.
Scriptures -- I find more guidance in the scriptures than almost anywhere else. It is never about what I am reading. It is the mechanism whereby my mind can tune to the voice of the Spirit who can tell me directly what I need to know. It is much like music that way for the language of the Spirit transcends finite language and limited words. It can place meaning to a feeling and direction to a prompting.
History -- I am an avid student of history. I dwell on my own history and many of my memories include many of you. Sometimes, you will just pop into my head and I daydream about our history and I wonder what you are doing now, what kind of person you have become. Many I still seek and many I may never see again in this life. I am what I am because of all of you.

I have many other things which I am grateful for. I could go on all year. But what I am grateful for holds little importance. It is that I am grateful that is important. What are you grateful for?