All Good Things

I know a lot of unhappy people. Flat out miserable, in fact. The funny thing is, many of them are unhappy for extremely trivial reasons.

Today, I can include myself in that. I'm not having a great day, and I've been mopey and miserable most of the day. And in the grand scheme of things, I've got no right to be unhappy. My life is really rather good. And so, in the spirit of Pollyanna (the character in the original book, not the somewhat negative connotation the name has come to embody), I give you my own version of The Glad Game. I now list for you the things I should be happy about.

1. I have a job. Let's face it, the economy is not in great shape these days. I'm one of the lucky ones, who has gainful employment, and for whom that does not appear to be changing in the immediate future. Of course, it could change, but for now, it's all good.
2. I have a roof over my head. And it doesn't leak, either.
   
3. I have friends. Not thousands, but a few close friends, and a number of very good acquaintances as well. I have people who like me, and will help me when I'm in need, or who just enjoy grabbing a cup of coffee when time permits.
4. I have people who love me. This one puts me at least one leg up on a lot of people in the world.
   
5. I have appropriate clothing available to me. In warm weather, I've got shorts and other light weight clothing. In cold weather, I've got warm things.
6. I have transportation and the money to use it. I have a working car, and can afford to put gas in it.
7. I can see the glory of the world. My eyes, though a bit myopic (who'm I kidding? I'm blind as a bat!), can see the sun, and the flowers, the color of the sky, rainbows, grass, all sorts of wonders.
   
8. I have the ability to create beautiful and wonderful things. I knit, I crochet, I sew, I cook, I bake, I garden, I sing. I do most of these things moderately well. Some people would say I do them EXTREMELY well, but I won't go there. Every once in a while, I have a happy accident.
   
9. I am safe. There are not bombs exploding all around me. I do not live in a place where I am in imminent danger of being mugged or raped just because I have left my house. I am not at risk of being destroyed by a natural disaster or a wild animal in the next 20 seconds. (At least I don't think so, though these things can and do happen.)
   
10. I have the ability to disagree. I live in a country where if I don't like something, I can say so. I do not take my life or that of my friends and family into my own hands should I say, "I have great reservations about this or that thing the Government is doing."
11. I have access to wonderful facilities. My local public library is about the best place on Earth. There are beautiful parks and forest preserves in reasonable distance from where I live. I can go to any number of museums and see amazing things.
12. I am not in a destructive, abusive relationship. It was close, but I made it out alive. It took several years, but I finally stopped looking over my shoulder. And now, I walk with my old confidence, with my head held high, and my signature "Bring it" posture. It's that ability to face the world and whatever it throws at me that I'm thankful for here.
    

This is just the tip of the iceberg. There are so many things I'm thankful for, I can't even imagine how long that list would be.

So, tell me, dear reader. What good things are in your life? What things are you thankful for? What good things are in your life that you couldn't imagine life without, from the smallest thing to the biggest?

Inquiring minds want to know....