followup/thanksgiving

I stayed up far too late last night. It was worth the lost sleep, though. And now as I can smell the good smells of roasting turkey and cornbread dressing, I think last night will still be the highlight of this little trip to Enterprise.

There was jazz to our conversation and laughter last night. Let me explain what I mean. It was like listening to John Coltrane play sax ... notes built to more notes, high flutters that you think can't go any higher or farther -- and then, suddenly there's more, unexpected bursts of music that take you even higher. Fun, fun. At some point, Chad said, "I wonder who is going to be the first person to write a book about what we did." And then someone chimed in with "Well, one of us would have to learn how to write first." There probably IS a book lurking back there in all the crazy stuff we did. And sometimes I think I should start putting those stories down on paper before we start forgetting them. But the temptation is too great to look back on my former self and whitewash a lot of the things I did or said. While I'm comfortable with myself now, I still cringe at some of the goofy stuff I said and did back then.

But on to the reason for this post: I'm thankful for a lot this year, and I've got some specific things in mind. So bear with me while I make a list.

-Misty. I know you read this, babe. Thank you for everything, especially for sticking by me when things got so hard earlier this year. I love you, and I will do my best to honor the faith you show in me on a daily basis.

-Family. My mom, dad, sister, brother, aunts and uncles mean the world to me. I probably don't tell them often enough.

-Insurance checks. Thanks, Allstate, for finally coming through. It took you long enough.

-Chris V., BR, Chad B. ... thanks for a night I'll remember for a long time, guys. In the process of talking about old memories, we also made some new ones. Who can forget BR's first experience with the Great Muta? Or the panicked run by three grown men through a deserted church hallway? Was that the last trace of a lingering legend? Probably not. Ha!

-A good roommate, and a nice house in which to live. Thanks, Chris Sims.

-New friends. Alana Nichols holds a special place in my heart. How could she not? The girl won a gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Paralympics. She's badass. And Katie Lewis can't lose. There are few people in the world who make you smile every time you talk to them, and Katie is one of those people.

-Reconnecting. Karel Shirel and Rachael Benton, I love you guys. It's meant so much to me to get to know you two as adults.

-Growth. I think I've grown more emotionally and spiritually in the past year than I have in a long time. And that growth hasn't always been easy, as I struggled to put some things in the past -- where they deserved to be -- and move on with my life.

That's where I am today. More thankful than I can say.