Here’s my monthly gratitude list, compiled on the 19th of the month, should it be of interest:

1. “We love you, Dad!” messages from my kids.
2. Friends who are willing to discuss instead of preach, to learn as well as teach, to reach out instead of to isolate.
3. Smart jokes.
4. Silly jokes.
5. Clean eye glasses.
6. Pics of my smiling kids.
7. The commitment to the idea that we may not always be right, and that those who disagree with us might not always be wrong.
8. Courage.  In self and in others.
9. Freshly washed bed linens, and the fact that I get to have at least three pillows every night.  A comfortable, clean, secure place to sleep is a gift unlike any other.
10. The little kids who stop and watch my sparring partner and me as we box in the park.  They have no need to feign disinterest.  They embrace their curiosity and spectator-ness.
11. Embracing curiosity.
12. The miraculous as it is realized through healing, medicine, science and compassion.
13. Forgiveness.
14. Listening.  Listening to others.  Having others listen to me.
15. A well-crafted argument, even when it disproves my own.
16. The way my kids support each other without a second thought.
17. Lotion.
18. Running water.
19. The promise of tomorrow.

If you’d like to share your list below, I’d love it. =)