it's thanksgiving 2005, and there are plenty of things to be thankful for:

- a wife. erica's the best thing that has happened to me in 2005, that's for sure. (i guess i'm supposed to say she's the best thing that has EVER happened to me. that's true, too.) it's been 6 months and i still haven't realized i have a wife, i don't think. but having a friend around every night has been the only thing that's gotten me through the rest of life. it's been a wonderful thing.

- a job. let's face it: a job is a job and it's pretty much a needed thing. so i'm thankful. but what's more, i am thankful i've made it through 4 months of my first year of teaching, and i am thankful for the growth it is bringing.

- little kids at the thanksgiving eve service. one little boy last night stood up and said the following, completely dead pan: "hello. i'm thankful for my little brother, philip. he's not here right now. i guess because he was crying. he tends to cry a lot. sometimes i am able to cheer him up, but not always. and sometimes my dad comes home from work with enough energy left to wrestle with me. we roll around on the floor and then my mom tries to break it up. she's always on the 'against the fighting' side of things." he said a few more random things, none of which really had anything to do with being thankful, and then abruptly sat down with no prior warning and handed the microphone to his dad. you probably had to be there, but it was unbelieveably funny.

- friends. the amount of support i've received in this job, the number of people who have told me they are praying for me, is simply incredible. it's quite humbling. besides that, friends are nice, as they usually make the transition to adulthood a little less painful.

- aldo, roni, mary carmen and their 4 adorable kids. this family arrived at our little thanksgiving meal at the church today. they are from mexico (roni, mary carmen, and the kids arrived in the area at 1AM this morning), and with me being the person who knew the most spanish at the church, i was recruited to talk with them. it was wonderful. they were beautiful people and they made me smile. it's always great when these worlds collide, when a different culture stumbles its way into little ol' coopersburg. which brings me to my next point, which i mentioned earlier:

- what i was doing last thanksgiving. what i would do to make that drive in the back of a pickup truck again on the most beautiful day imaginable. what i would do to once again stand on the back of a jeep holding on for dear life and ride back into town, laughing the entire way of the mess of a hike we had just made.

- family. it's nice to all be in one spot. and that little logan gets cuter every day it hurts.

- the book of romans.

- village green records and jared cheek, a man with so much generosity it'll drive him to bankruptcy.

- bethlehem. it's a nice town.

- giggling.

- my mom's stuffing.

- the people who have visited us at 1616 maple. (and the people who haven't visited us, too, of course.)

- a few other things, too, that have since escaped me.

have a happy day.