GESENHUES: A year of gratitude

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December 30, 2008

By Amy Gesenhues The News and Tribune Tue Dec 30, 2008, 05:56 PM EST

I believe that gratitude does as much for the person giving it as the person who receives it. I say thanks for everything. I tell my daughter thank you for being my daughter every night when I tuck her in. I think a silent thank you to myself every time I see our mail lady leave envelopes in our mail box (I can't explain it, but I love getting mail).

It's been a big year for me and I have a lot of thanks to be giving. I can't think of a better way to express my gratitude than right here on the page.

My first thanks belong to the powers that be that made our new YMCA possible, what a great addition to our community. I love every class I sweat through and every treadmill step I take.

Thank you to all the businesses who keep me well fed and well read. La Rosita, Market Street Fish House, and Sportstime are my favorite places to go when I have no energy or interest in cooking for the evening. A family night out on our town always includes a yummy meal, a stop at our local book shop (thank you Randy for giving us Destinations Booksellers), and a chai latte at HobKnobb Roasting Company.

In all fairness, HobKnobb deserves more than a brief mention. If I'm leaving my house, there is a good chance that the first place I'm going is our local coffee shop drive-through. I drink coffee like I'm getting paid to do it. The HobKnobb gets a big fat thank you for keeping my caffeine addiction alive and kicking with every shot of espresso I mainline.

I cannot say thanks to our local business community without giving Target its fair share. Thank you Target for being less than five minutes away from my house. Thank you for giving me a store where I can buy just about anything. Thank you for your orange stickers. (Somehow me thanking Target feels a bit like an alcoholic thanking a bartender, but, like a bartender, it deserves a thank you nonetheless).

This year I got the biggest gift a family could receive when I gave birth to a new baby boy in October. A million thanks have been given for that endowment. I thank the universe each night for him and his sister, but I haven't thanked the wonderful staff at Floyd Memorial who made the experience so joyful. Thank you to our local hospital and all the people who keep it up and running. I know much of your time is spent making sick people well, but you deserve a special thanks for making this well person happy by helping deliver the best gift she received all year.

Thank you to our President elect. Your first day on the job can't come soon enough.

Thank you to my family and friends. I get to say it in person every day, but this is a column about gratitude and I can't leave you out. I'm surrounded by friends who keep me laughing and a family who keeps me loved. It's because of you that my Christmas has been a merry one. And even though my sister and brother-in-law live five states away, I'm thankful they return to the knobs every year to open Christmas gifts and usher in the New Year.

I'm thankful for my career and especially grateful for the women who care for my children so that I can work in an office without worrying about them while I'm there. Sheila Malysz and her staff give me a peace of mind that every mother who works in and out of the home dreams about. Thank you for that and for teaching, feeding and loving my kiddos when I'm not there.

And for my husband, there is not enough thanks in this world to give you what you deserve. You make my life possible; how do you thank someone for that? I'll write it here and do my best to keep up with laundry-but don't bank on the laundry thing.

My final thanks go to you, the reader. Knowing that people read what I write validates me more than any other experience as a writer; you can't imagine how much it means to me. So thank you a thousand times over for reading my stuff and thank you to my publisher for letting me put it out there.

Amy Gesenhues is a freelance writer who lives in Floyd County. You can read her daily commentaries at www.AmyWroteIt.Wordpress.com. E-mail her directly at amy@amywroteit.com.

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