Amanda Lamb: Thankfulness

The holiday season is clearly a time of year to be thankful. In fact, it seems easier to be thankful when everyone else is in a festive mood, preparing for the holidays — time with family, maybe a little time off, parties and presents. But do we ever really name what we’re thankful for besides the obvious — our family, friends, and the roof over our heads?

Recently, my youngest daughter had to do just that for a school project. The students made a placemat with 58 squares in which to write in individual things the child was thankful for. In addition to the standard answers of “Mom,” “Dad,” and “toys,” there were other unique answers that included just about everything in the solar system, almost every holiday and all critical body parts. My favorite answers were the offbeat ones like “cursive” (which she is just learning), “my glasses,” (they are purple—who wouldn’t be thankful?) and “Rita’s” (water ice). There were also the simple yet profound ones — “love,” “colors,” and “words.” And then of course the practical ones — “food,” “water” and “house.”

“Wow, that must have been hard to think of so many things you are thankful for,” I said honestly astonished by the lack of duplication in her list.

“Not at all,” she said with a big grin. “I wish I had more space.”

She inspired me to make my own list, and of course, she’s right up there at the very top.