Thankfulness: Week 4

1. Blogging: I'm thankful to have an opportunity to write down my "Random Thoughts" and to look back on the memorable days that I've had in recent years. I'm probably not the best creative writer in the world. However, I think that blogging has helped to give me a better perspective of who I was compared to who I am now.

2. Sports: I'm thankful that playing or watching sports, most specifically basketball, has given me several opportunities to spend time with my family or best friends. Maybe I'll never be the next John Stockton in my life but I have learned several important concepts, such as teamwork, from basketball or other sports which I am grateful for. I appreciate the additional joy and happiness that sports continues to bring into my life.

3. Technology: I'm thankful for the modern technology that allows me to have a wheelchair, to still be able to drive a vehicle despite my disability, continue my education, and to communicate with my family or friends more often. I appreciate how modern technology has provided me with a better quality of life than I may have had if I would have been born 100 years ago.

4. Kindness: I'm thankful that I've benefited from the kindness of my best friends and family. I remember being very nervous at the beginning of my freshman year of high school that immature people would make fun of me or tease me consistently because of my disability. Fortunately I've never really had to worry much about that though. It's been amazing to see the countless times that my friends have been willing to go out of their way to be genuinely kind to me even when we didn't know each other very well. I couldn't have asked for a better family and best friends than I have.

5. My mom: I'm thankful for the far reaching, positive influence that my mom continues to have on my life even though she passed away a few years ago. I'm grateful for the active interest that she took in my life, the example that she set for me to follow, and the genuinely good person that she was. I was born on my mom's birthday and I have really missed being able to spend my birthday with her since she died. My mom was one of my very best friends and I always felt comfortable with telling her about anything that was going on in my life. I'm thankful for the knowledge that I'll be able to see her again when my life is over and I really do appreciate the unconditional love, support, and kindness that she always provided for me. After she died I certainly gained more of an appreciation for how much easier she made my life and for the wonderful person that she was. I'm thankful for her willingness to help me whenever I struggled and that she was so proud of me whenever I accomplished something or was successful growing up.