What I am thankful for this year

By Mike Ruffin

1. I’m thankful for integrity.
2. I’m thankful for the handful of pills I take every day. I wish I didn’t have to take them, but I need them, they help me stay healthy, and they’re available, so I’m grateful.
3. I’m thankful that insurance pays for most of my medicine. I wish everyone could be similarly blessed.
4. I’m thankful that I have much better use of my right hand than I had earlier in the year.
5. I’m thankful for decency.
6. I’m thankful for fried chicken. It’s a good Sunday if I can worship the Lord, take a nap, and eat fried chicken. I’m grateful that I have a lot of good Sundays.
7. I’m thankful for democracy. I hope we can keep it.
8. I’m thankful for doctors. I’ve had to have several this year, and I’m grateful for all they have done for me.
9. I’m thankful that the Atlanta Braves are the 2021 World Series champions.
10. I’m thankful for people who don’t live in the past.
11. I’m thankful for people who stand up against racism, classism, sexism, jingoism, and a bunch of other isms that we’d be better off without.
12. I’m thankful for my wife. Y’all just don’t know how grateful I am for my wife.
13. I’m thankful for the television show New Tricks. It’s a light-hearted police procedural on Britbox. It’s fun.
14. I’m thankful for our home in Macon. It’s where we belong.
15. I’m thankful for our children and grandchildren. They give me hope.
16. I’m thankful for breakfast for supper on a cold night.
17. I’m thankful for the grace of God.
18. I’m thankful for science.
19. I’m thankful for churches that invite me to preach. I’m doubly grateful for churches that invite me back.
20. I’m thankful for my grilled chicken wings. You’ve probably had some good chicken wings, but you’ve never had better wings than my grilled chicken wings.
21. I’m thankful for people who are vaccinated. Thank you for thinking about others as well as about yourself.
22. I’m thankful for people with a broad worldview.
23. I’m thankful for people with a sense of nuance.
24. people with a sense of irony.
25. I’m thankful for people with a sense of humor.
26. I’m thankful for honor.
27. I’m thankful for people who read the words I write. Your doing so honors me.