AJC > Sandy Springs > Blog > Archives > 2008 > November > 10
Monday, November 10, 2008
A lot to be thankful for
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Caroline Hartrampf, age 19, of Sandy Springs was recently killed in an automobile accident and it hit close. Our daughter is 19 and when I hear about accidents like that my mind goes to the unthinkable “what if” place.
Separately, I spent some time earlier this month with the family of a young man I knew, Caleb, who died unexpectedly a couple of years ago. I watched his brother walk through the months of questions and anger following the funeral. We gathered to remember Caleb and raise funds to help those in need.
I bring all this up because we’ve been hammered with months of bad news. Gas prices were eating us alive just a month ago. The sub-prime mortgage business slammed broadside into the rest of the economy this year. Congress voted to bail out ineptly run corporations — with our money. We were told how divided we were by who we had chosen to get behind in the race for the White House.
I don’t ever want my happiness to come at the expense of those who have experienced loss, but we might also not want to wait to carve the turkey later this month to start counting some of our blessings.
So while this has been a year we won’t forget for a while I look around and have a hard time believing my life is as bad as some would suggest.
I have a roof over my head, clothes on my back and enough to eat. My car runs fine and I have work.
A friend’s young son has recently been declared to be in remission from leukemia. Another friend in North Carolina wrapped her chemotherapy last month with an optimistic prognosis.
And at this writing everyone in my immediate family that began 2008 is still with me, living each day on their terms. Everybody is healthy.
Hard times? I guess. But from where I sit there are no bad days.
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