Birthday Blessings: 35 Reasons to be Thankful

It was my birthday yesterday, and I am officially old. Grey hairs are sprouting all over the shop and bits will soon start shrivelling up and dropping off. The stairlift beckons and the grim reaper is smiling as he sharpens his scythe. But nevertheless – I have decided to kick things off on a positive note by listing 35 reasons to be thankful today.

1. Thank you that my wonderful mother is happy and well and loves me and called first thing to wish me happy birthday.
2. Thank you for my beautiful niece, who sang happy birthday down the line – the best present I could ever have wished for.
3. Thank you for my sister, who was thoughtful enough to ring me up and force my niece to sing it.
4. Thank you for all my friends who took the time to send their well wishes.
5. Thank you for those who came to dinner and gave me gifts.
6. Thank you that I could afford to reward their efforts by getting all the drinks in.
7. Thank you that I have a roof over my head.
8. Thank you that I have a job to go to this morning.
9. Thank you that I am not the homeless man who sits outside my office every day.
10. Thank you for my little legs that walked me to and from my destination.
11. Thank you for my lovely lungs that keep me going.
12. Thank you for my car that drove me to the station.
13. Thank you for the flowers in my garden.
14. Thank you for the clothes on my back and the shoes on my feet.
15. Thank you for all the cake I consumed to celebrate another year on this planet.
16. Thank you for all the amazing holidays and adventures I’ve had.
17. Thank you that I have experienced what it is to love and be loved.
18. Thank you for all the near misses and lucky escapes.
19. Thank you for all the hardships and obstacles that made me grow and forced me to realise I’m stronger than I ever thought I could be.
20. Thank you for allowing me to reach an age where I’ve learned to love myself exactly as I am, with all my quirks and flaws.
21. Thank you for the birthday burger and cheeky G+T from my friend at work at lunchtime.
22. Thank you that I still look relatively youthful for my age.
23. Thank you for my hearing that enabled me to listen to my nearest and dearest sing happy birthday to me.
24. Thank you for my eyesight that’s allowed me to enjoy all the wondrous things I’ve seen over the past 35 years.
25. Thank you for my hands, which have been able to feel and comfort and create.
26. Thank you for my feet, which have never stopped dancing.
27. Thank you for having clean drinking water on tap.
28. Thank you for not having to worry about turning on the central heating.
29. Thank you for the memories of my lovely dad to remember on my birthday.
30. Thank you for still having most of my teeth (and most of my hair).
31. Thank you for the sunshine.
32. Thank you for the rain.
33. Thank you for another chance to start again.
34. Thank you for still having half my life to look forward to.
35. Thank you that it wasn’t me that got stuck in the lift at hometime. : )