- For the unconditional love of family. It provides me with the security to discover who and what I am and who and what I can become.
- For the gift of time. Each hour of each day and night offers new opportunity for me to reach out, take, give, be, and grow.
- For the beauty of the Earth. It encourages my heart and rescues me from the tedium of daily life.
- For the full use of my senses. The ability to see, touch, taste, smell, and hear allows me to become one with God’s creation.
- For my community of faith. Through the Christian church the noble, unselfish, and servant nature of humanity finds voice as we support each other in the quest for meaning and purpose in life and opportunities to contribute to the betterment of society and the building of the Kingdom of God here on the Earth.
- For my freedoms: I have freedom for living given me by my God. It is only through Him that the unselfish, tender, and noble parts of me can withstand the onslaught of the self-serving and callous nature struggling to emerge from within. I have freedom for living given me by my country. It was founded on the principal that all of us are created equal, and I can express beliefs and live as my own conscience dictates. I have freedom for living given me by my family and friends. Because they love me, they accept the unlovely parts of me and support me when I face adversity so that I can emerge on the other side of the conflict a stronger and more deserving creature.
- For my heritage. The long line of love and commitment goes back generations – the love for God and the respect for others and self that I learned by example.
- For those whose lives have intersected with and impacted mine. From the aunts and uncles of my childhood, to colleagues of bygone years, to eager students, to fellow worshippers, to thoughtful bloggers – they have all had a part in making me who I am.
- For those whose lives I have been able to touch. I have seen: the visible light when a student finally succeeds in a difficult task or understands a complex concept, the smile flashed when another person hears his/her worth affirmed, the comfort found by sharing a common interest, concern, or grief.
- For a searching mind and spirit. Life-long learning allows me to live many lives in one.
- For communication. How lonely the road would be could we not share thoughts, ideas, and beliefs with others.
- For a comfortable home and adequate food.
- For a modicum of financial security. My life need not revolve around meeting basic needs. Free of this burden, I can fly.
Joan is a retired teacher who lives in Georgia—we followed each other as bloggers and now we are friends on Facebook. What’s interesting about this list (reposted at FB from a 2007 blog entry) is that only the last 2 refer to anything material—which I think is how most retirees feel.
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