I recently received an email that linked to an article called “50 Economic Numbers That Are Almost Too Crazy To Believe”. The article was a slide show with captions covering how badly (even worse than we think) the economy is performing ranging from unemployment to debt to homelessness to foreclosures. The article made me think about the cares of this world stealing our joy…
So, to contrast this type of negative report, I am submitting to you my list of things that are awesome, give me joy and I am extremely thankful for. This is Lisa’s list of “50 of my Favorite Things”. (Disclaimer: this list is not all inclusive!)
9. colorful Christmas lights
1. relationship with God 2. my family 3. working on my daughter’s science project with her 4. daughter’s smile 5. friend’s children’s smiles 6. doggie 7. doggie barking at nothing 8. old Christmas decorations 9. colorful Christmas lights 10. neighbors that go crazy lighting up their houses 11. the smell of roasting garlic 12. bird that lives in a nest on my porch 13. planning to see family over the holidays 14. going for a walk 15. the smell of pine trees after a rain 16. music 17. Bing Crosby singing various Christmas carols 18. community Little Theater 19. playing guitar 20. looking at mountains 21. the sound of a running brook 22. listening to the middle school’s band concert 23. children excited about their performance 24. singing Christmas carols with my daughter and sister-in-law and laughing, laughing, laughing 25. listening to my daughter practice her flute 26. smelling the soup my husband is making for dinner 27. looking forward to having lunch with a friend 28. watching a good – often old – movie 29. thinking about Christmas memories from the years past 30. volunteering 31. coming together with other believers to worship the Christ child 32. taking part as a volunteer on an Inheritance of Hope Legacy Retreat 33. studying how God made the human body 34. watching a little child play 35. watching a mother hold her baby 36. biking 37. the smell of fresh herbs 38. being safe and warm at night 38. renaming truffles to fudgie-truffles because they came out too soft 39. making my own radio station on the internet 40. hearing my friend Marge’s laugh 41. seeing my brother-in-law, Chris, smile and wink at me 42. knowing that hard times on this earth are temporary 43. hiking new trails 44. the ‘Hallelujah Chorus’ 45. going for a run 46. the smell and sound of a wood fire 47. old friends 48. new friends 49. vegetable juice 50. potatoes.
Ok. Now it’s your turn to come up with a list of your 50 favorite things! Let’s face it, we all have things that are difficult in our lives and can bring us down. It’s good to have a list like this ready. Like the song from ‘The Sound of Music’ …“When the dog barks, when the bee stings, when I’m feeling sad, I’ll simply remember my favorite things….” It sounds ultra-simplistic, but I believe there is truth to this.
Merry Christmas to you! May your day be filled with joy, hope and the peace of Jesus.
Lisa
