Purse, keys, glasses, grocery bags, mask, hand sanitizer.   Out the door ready to meet a different world.  Do I need gas for the car?  Better take some protective gloves. 

I need to call and put in my wine order so they can meet me curbside. 

I wish that curbside pick up at Price Chopper had worked, but I still need to see and  touch the produce and skim the aisles for things I haven’t thought about, not to mention items to replace the ones that aren’t available.  Canned goods are getting scarce again.  Is the toilet paper aisle looking bare?  Trying not to hoard but experience has set the tone for grabbing now or risk going without.

I wonder if frozen spinach is back – better stock up if it is.

Another masked person with nose totally uncovered – really?  Do I comment or just pass by quickly? Maybe raising my eyebrows in that exaggerated questioning look will work.

Oh shit, I’m going down the aisle the wrong way, but I’m only a few feet from what I need, do I keep going or turn around?  Raised questioning eyebrows from person going the right way.  I just need to grab that tomato sauce right over there.

The price of beef is beyond belief, but I am so sick of poultry.  Beans, I need some beans to make meatless chili and maybe some of that black bean soup.

I am trying not to join the COVID weight gain gang so as attractive as pasta and rice are, especially in the cold weather, I don’t want to overdo it. 

Cheese – lots of animal fat for my low cholesterol diet.

What AM I supposed to eat – low sodium for BP, low fat for high cholesterol, low carb for weight management, can’t eat a lot of raw vegetables because of the diverticulitis, no nuts or seeds.  Roasted veggies are great – but every day? 

Eggs – not too many because of cholesterol and egg whites only get me so far.

Not fair, I exercise every day, do yoga and meditate, watch what I eat, and cholesterol and blood pressure are still a problem – even with meds.   And now even my glucose levels are rising.  Thanks family for the compromised genes!

But wait.  I am racing full steam down that negative track.  Finding fault with everything.  Feeling sorry for myself.   It’s Thanksgiving in a few days.  Where is my gratitude?  For what…..

I am standing here in a store filled with choices and quantity beyond imagination in much of the world.

I am walking on my own two feet with relative ease, able to reach up or down to retrieve items from shelves – except that highest one because my 4 feet 11 inches doesn’t get me there!

I am breathing clean air despite the mask, and have unlimited clean water available at a seconds notice. 

My warm coat and boots were selected from several in my closet. 

A long hot shower eased my stiff muscles and cleansed my body this morning in one of our two bathrooms. 

I am well rested from a night’s sleep in a warm bed in the solid shelter of my heated home – with my husband and dog snuggled next to me.

I am free to leave my home to walk my dog on neighborhood streets or in the well kept park without fear for my safety. 

 I drive a one year old car that demands no more than a tank of gas to get me anywhere I’d like to go – and have the ability to purchase that gas without counting my pennies or worrying whether the pump will provide an ample supply.

My cell phone is ready to not only connect with friends and family in the blink of an eye, but also to look up the ingredients for a recipe, see if I need my umbrella today, or find the words to that tune that keeps going through my head.

Medicine is available to assist in managing my health and I have insurance to help with costs. 

The number of choices available around every corner – color, style, flavor, cost, purpose etc. – sometimes makes me feel like not getting the exact item I want is a major problem – even when there are 20 other options available!  Just having a choice is a privilege, one I can easily lose sight of!

I am grateful for the big things like family, friends, health and shelter.  But I am also grateful for the small things that I often take for granted.  I am grateful to live in relative wealth, not just in dollars and cents, but in opportunities and possibilities offered within each day.

The sky brightens as clouds of worry and woe clear, revealing the reality of the state of my wondrous world.  

Happy Thanksgiving to all!  May your day be filled with wonders, big and small.

• Uncategorized