Practical Blessings

Last night I slept over with my dear friend Serena, and as we happily bunked down in her large and cozy bed for the inevitable pillow talk that is the best part of any good sleepover, I confided in her a secret.

"Have you ever seen White Christmas?" I asked. "You know that part when Bing Crosby says that the thing to do when you can't sleep is to count your blessings (instead of sheep)?"

(start the video at 1:30)

"That's what I try to do each night, and especially when I have insomnia," I explained. And now for posterity, here are the very first blessings I always think of:

1. Thank God that I have a pillow. When I first moved to DC, I didn't bring a pillow with me because I planned to buy one here. But one thing led to another, and I had been living in Silver Springs for nearly 2 weeks before I finally had a pillow to call my own. I didn't realize how hard it had been to fall asleep without a pillow until I had one again, and let me tell you, I will never again take pillows for granted.

2. Thank God for my mattress. Same thing as above - I went through a (mercifully brief) mattress-less period earlier this summer, when all I had was my bed frame and the boxspring. I don't know if you've ever slept on a bed without a mattress but it's high on the scale of uncomfortable experiences I hope not to repeat any time soon.

3. Thank God for my blanket... are you beginning to see a pattern here? I actually did bring a blanket with me so I've never yet had to sleep without one (thank God) but it just seems to follow naturally from the first two, especially knowing that there are people in the world who don't have a blanket to sleep under at night.

I think it's pretty funny that these are always the first three things I thank God for, of an evening. I'm sure there are much more eloquent things I could be grateful for, in a life that so far has included "blessings without number and mercies without end." But somehow I always start out with those three. It really is the little things, isn't it?

And just to round it off, a few other little blessings of late...

The security guard in my office building, Shawn, had a baby girl last week! She was showing me pictures of the little beauty on her cell phone. As Mammy would say, "the happiest days are when babies are born."

Making friends with Bart and Frank, who are very sweet and funny, and pretty much make me feel like the queen of the world whenever I'm with them. Not to mention they keep me very entertained. What more could one ask for in friends?