Day 8 - Simple Things

Today my gratitude is for the simple things, the regular things, the things, places, people, opportunities, circumstances I usually take for granted.

* Electricity - it keeps the fridge cold and the oven hot, two things I definitely take for granted.

* Gas stations - a few years ago, there was a gas shortage here in Charlotte. No one knew why it was only in this area, but it was a sobering thing to drive past station after station that didn't have gas. Abandoned cars everywhere.

* Trucks - how else would the food get to Trader Joe's?

* Local farmers

* Garbage collectors and recycling pick up

* Vacuum cleaner bags

* Clean sheets and towels

* Toothpaste on a new toothbrush

* Olive oil

* Eyeglasses

* The internet - how else would I reach you beautiful people?

* Having a white board and dry erase markers in the homeschool room

* The perpetual book sale at the library

* Old washcloths converted into dusting cloths

* Being able to bathe our tiny dog in the bathroom sink

* A well-executed haircut

* The ability to walk - for exercise, for pleasure, or to go get a glass of water

* The deep sleep derived from half an ambien pill

* Combs and brushes

* Dog food

* Suitcases and backpacks

* Breakfast

* The ability to speak, read, and teach Spanish

* Elephants

* Photographs

* Monday Night Football

* Pineapple

* The way doctors can send prescriptions directly to the pharmacy via email

* Umbrellas

* Windshield wipers

* Elevators that ascend and descend 50 floors in seconds

* Parking lots

* Automatic sliding doors

* Hugs

* Spider webs

* Lightbulbs

* Drive up drop off boxes at the library

* Bedtime tea

*****
I must confess that as I composed this list, I realized that none of this stuff is simple. Every single thing on this list - and on every gratitude list I've made of late - is complex, multi-layered, and miraculous. Just think about it - "a well-executed haircut" involves a barber (with a complex life story that landed him in the barbershop), scissors and clippers and hairspray and a cape and mirrors (made by many people a long way from the barbershop), a barber chair (ditto), the barbershop itself (built by carpenters and bricklayers way back when), plus the car that got me to the barbershop and so on. See? Miraculous. And yet how often do we take getting a haircut or filling our gas tanks, or shopping at the supermarket for granted??? And don't get me started on the wild, inexplicable, undeniable wonder of elephants!!!