This Thanksgiving gave me ample time to think about what I was thankful for.

I had to work on Black Friday at my job here in Abilene, so after a delicious Thanksgiving dinner with my Grandma, I made the drive back to the Big Country.

My roommates and I discovered a couple of weeks ago as the first real cold front came in that we had a gas leak. So for obvious reasons we kept the gas off and have no way of heating our house until our landlady gets it fixed.

So there I am Friday night after work, huddled in a sleeping bag, under a comforter, under a quilt, wearing long underwear as the outside temperature dropped into the low twenties.

It’s times like that where your thankful for blankets.

That next morning I had to be at work by 7:30, but getting out of my bed was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done.

I’m not ashamed to admit that I was a wimp, but getting out my warm bed and entering a house that (according to our in house thermometer) was 44 degrees made me shake with trepidation.

Going through my morning routine was even worse. The cold tiles of the bathroom floor nearly froze my toes. And I’m sure you would appreciate it if I didn’t mention how cold the toilet seat was.

In times like that your thankful for a warm shower.

After work I went back to my house and thankfully the sun had warmed it up into the fifties. So with jacket on I cooked my supper. Warm food in my belly was another blessing.

Not wanting to spend any more time than I had to in my frigid house I went to the bookstore. Yes, it may be a little nerdy but I spent around four hours at Books-A-Million reading in one of those armchairs they have scattered around the store, then off to Walmart for some supper materials.

Huddled over the oven, I was thankful for good food and any source of heat-  even a stove burner.

Throughout all those horrible experiences I managed to live through this holiday weekend, I thought of how grateful I was that the worst of my troubles was being cold for a couple hours a day. Central heating is unheard of in many parts of the world. Families who have one blanket and huddle together like sheep to remain warm through the night.

So often we take for granted what we have. Blessed as we are, it often takes a little bit of suffering to truly appreciate what we have most of the time.

Yes, I’m going to whine about how my world isn’t perfect, but at the same time, I’m glad.