Thursday was a typical day in January... a little on the cold side... but the sun was shining; so it was a good day to go to town...get some groceries...do some errands...get some gas....
The old guy that used to pump my gas retired a couple months ago and I miss him. I enjoyed the little conversations we had. He loved "making conversation" - you could tell.
The fellow that took over for him was a growly fellow; he always approached the car with a scowl and never exchanged a word of conversation.
I pulled in by the pumps, rolled down my window, and turned off the ignition. Steeling myself for the scowl I was expecting, I turned my head and coming toward me was someone I had not met yet.
He wore a smile that spread from ear to ear - a smile that made you glad you were alive to receive it.
What a difference a smile can make in a person's day. It seems to put you back in touch with everything that is worth living for - whether you know the smiling person or not. I am still carrying that man's smile in my heart 48 hours later.
I AM GRATEFUL TO BE ALIVE.
I AM GRATEFUL TO BE.
I AM GRATEFUL.....
Six years ago when my husband died, I had to fight for the will to go on. Three and a half years went by; and I was still struggling. More of me wanted to leave here than stay. My family was all grown. Even my grandchildren were busy with the lives they were building for themselves. I didn't feel needed anymore. I hadn't learned yet that is not the only reason for living.
One sunny day in spring, as I was giving my granddaughter a drive back to the university she was attending, I got a flat tire while driving at highway speed. By the time I regained control of the car, we were on the wrong side of the highway in the path of a transport truck. I figured we stood a better chance with the 40-foot embankment.
They needed the jaws-of-life to get me out of the car. My grandaughter was not injured - I thank God daily for that. I would not want to leave a legacy like that behind. If it were not for my granddaughter, I would never have got out of that car. Nobody would have known where I had disappeared to even. How terrible that would have been for my family - the not knowing. My grandaughter was so brave that day. She climbed out the back window of the car; and scaled the embankment in her bare feet to get help (her sandals had come off in the accident).
That accident gave me so much to be grateful for. My granddaughter's life. My life. My injuries could have been so much worse. I have had to fight to regain my mobility after that accident - and it may never be what it was before the accident. But it gave me back my life...............
And for that, I am grateful.
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