There's nothing like counting blessings to erase any lingering feeling of lack. Notice I said "feeling of lack" since I'm not anywhere near those unfortunate ones who actually experience material lack.
Take last night, for example. We met old friends for dinner in one of our favorite towns, Lawrence, KS, home of the Jayhawks, a fabulous basketball team, and a full-of-surprises football team. My alma mater. But beyond that, this little city is full of sparkle, full of a determined "can-do" spirit, with a decidedly liberal bent.
The friends we met were of that bent too. They showed off their new Hybrid Camry and talked about their recent trips to Latvia, Paris and Machu Picchu. I showed off my new winter boots (not Uggs but just as warm) and we talked about how the world could change for the better now that Obama is poised to take the helm.
We ate at a moderately priced restaurant in the heart of the city, and by 6:30 it was full. No poverty to be found here, nor, indeed, anywhere among my friends. We are all solidly middle class and most of us are entrepreneurial enough to be independent of worry about jobs. Of course the flip side is that we don't have (and never did have) corporate health insurance or 401(k) plans. Bailouts bring no great reprieve since we have no mortgages to worry about and are debt free. Watching old movies on TV brings as much joy as seeing the latest one, but it's still nice to have the funds to do both.
Most of all, I'm grateful for the people who love me and who I love, those whom the Beatles wrote about long ago: "I get by with a little help from my friends."
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