What Makes You Blessed?

This is an appropriate question at this time of year.

It's easy to overlook all the blessings in our lives. Each life has its ups and downs, its successes and failures. I, like most people, tend to focus on the challenges in life. Our country is struggling; it is divided more than it has been during my lifetime. Acts of violence and hatred have skyrocketed. 

I have continued to struggle with eye issues that have left me with greatly diminished vision in what used to be my 'good' eye. I have had four eye surgeries, a non-surgical procedure, a laser treatment and two injections into one eye in less than two years. My vision will never be what it used to be.  But

• I am blessed that I can see well enough to drive, to read, to travel and to take part in my passion of photography. I can continue to live independently.   
• I am blessed to be able to travel the world. In 2018, I visited Yellowstone, Nicaragua, Tanzania, Alaska, Brazil, Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks, Colorado and Ethiopia.   
• I am blessed to own a beautiful home that I love. It provides shelter from the heat, cold, rain and wind. It is a safe haven for me and my dogs. It has gorgeous views of the mountains.
• I am blessed to share my life with three loving dogs who ask for nothing more than a daily walk, good food and lots of attention. 
• I am blessed to have a good friend who has been, and is, willing to drive me to countless eye appointments.  
• I am blessed to have food for myself and my dogs. My pantry and my freezer are filled with food. 
• Unlike so many Americans, I am blessed to have good health insurance that pays for almost all of my medical expenses, including my expensive eye surgeries. 
• I am blessed to have a wonderful, supportive friend in California. We seldom get to visit in person, but she is just a phone call away.
• Overall, I am in good health. Eye problems aside, I have no major health issues.
• I am blessed to live in a free country, despite its current problems, divisiveness and corruption.

I could go on to list many more ways in which I am blessed. But you get the idea. Regardless of our circumstances and struggles, there are blessings to be found in our lives. 

With Thanksgiving Day just a week away, I encourage everyone to take a few minutes to think about the blessings in your life. And please consider what you can do to be a blessing to others. Perhaps you can volunteer for a cause that's important to you. Perhaps you can give an elderly neighbor a ride to the grocery store. Visit someone who is lonely. Donate food to an organization that helps feed those who cannot afford to buy enough food for themselves or their family. 

I wish everyone a wonderful, blessed Thanksgiving.