The occasional blood sport of gratitude

Thanksgiving gives us the opportunity to open ourselves to the perspective and willingness to find the good in the not-so-good.

And finding the good in the not-so-good has almost become a blood sport for me in the past few years.

Every year about this time, I do ask myself what I am so thankful for, and not the obvious gimmes - like family and Auntie Anne’s Pretzels or messy buns - but the things that are harder to say ‘thank you’ for.

So, what am I thankful for this year? So much, and yet not enough.

In no particular order, I am oddly grateful for:

• The fact that murder hornets have not yet mi grated south from Washington State.

• My husband telling me each week how ‘the kid’ is doing on Yellowstone because violence in TV shows gives me an anxiety attack and I can’t take it. Don’t judge.

• The many lines around my eyes that frame them like mid-century modern wall art. Yes, I’m giving some thanks for all of those. It means I’ve spent a lot of time in my life laughing and that is no small thing to be thankful for. I’m also grateful for the friends who help me etch those lines around my eyes.

• The four-month bout with Salmonella I fought last year, because I learned the hard way to not eat raw cookie dough.

• The light in the office bathroom that flickers like it’s haunted every time I turn it on, because I feel like I’m entering a disco and that puts some fun in an otherwise dull day.

• For Facebook, because it’s like an X-Ray machine showing a person’s heart.

• Of course, I am most grateful for my family - those I have been blessed and honored to know, and even those I never will have the chance to meet. All of them have contributed in some way to who I am.

I hope this Thanksgiving finds each of you basking in your obvious blessings, and finding the rainbow when it doesn’t feel like a blessing.