I'm Grateful To...

My grandfather for teaching me, at a young age, not to turn car tires when the vehicle is stopped because it will wear out the rubber. Now, when I am backing or going forward, I turn the wheels only while moving, even at a very slow speed. Easier on the car, easier on me, as well. (My grandfather never drove a car in his life.)

My barber for teaching me, as a child, that all people are created equal and so we must treat them equally. When there is a line in the shop for haircuts, he took us in the order in which we arrived. This little kid may be ahead of the village councilman and that’s the way things went. Fifty-some years later, I still hold that lesson dear.

My father for teaching me to own up to things I did. The details are unimportant, but when he apologized, I never felt less of him. Nor of others who err mightily.

All the people who invented the things we use to make our lives more comfortable. Recliners, computers, highways, cars, toilets, domesticated cats, antacids, medications, traffic regulations, ice cream cones, dictionaries, cruise ships, the rockets’ red glare, music, radio and baked alaska.

My brother who taught me not to take the first swing in a fight. But make the second one count. He taught me there is much joy in traveling without a road map and not a particular destination in mind; I still don’t understand it and wouldn’t do it on a dare, but I see how much he loves it and I enjoy his stories. At home. With tea.