Thankful Thursday

I sat on a bar stool at The Tap Room yesterday talking with Elizabeth Usovicz while the Royals lost game five of the American League Championship series and twenty-five other Rotarians cheered for their boys in blue.

In Kansas City, “the boys in blue” means our home baseball team.  It’s taken me thirty  years — since the 1985 World Series — to think of the Royals as my team, but I do.  In 1985, I wore my Cardinals red to court; but I’ve lived half my life here now and I consider myself a Kansas Citian.

The Royals lost last night, but I won.  I measure my day’s outcome by the gifts that I took home with me.  After my Terrible Tuesday, I had a damned-near-Wonderful-Wednesday, a cake not just iced but piped with buttercream rosettes.

Elizabeth told me that she has resolved to bring her best self to each day.  I felt a rush of recognition.  I recalled telling someone a year or so ago that I aspired to be the best version of my self that I could be.  When Elizabeth shared her philosophy, I knew that I had found a sister leopard, with beautiful spots and the lanky lean muscles that come from running the distance with a thorn in your paw.

On my way out of the restaurant, I stopped to visit with Mbugua Njoroge, another of our Club members.  How are you today, Corinne? he said, in his lilting South African voice.  I leaned down to answer.  My friend, I replied.  I woke up today, so I figure that perhaps God’s not done with me here yet.

He graced me with a radiant smile.

I don’t truck with religion.  I left Catholicism because it plagued my life in ways that don’t need to be discussed.  I tried the Episcopal religion two or three times over the last thirty years, without finding a comfortable niche. I even went to the local Un-Church, Oasis, but quite frankly, as one woman told me, it’s just a church with another name.  In reality my views do not jive with any organized religion.  So I just keep muddling through life, with no place to go on Sunday mornings but my front porch.

I consider myself a fairly thoughtful person, and I’ve had twenty-two months to contemplate this “not-complaining” quest.  At the essence of my mission lies my desire to be joyful.  I know I can only be joyful if I strive to be my best self, to bring the best of what I can to every human encounter and every task.  I’m not there yet, but I woke up again today, so apparently there’s still time.

And for the gift of a little more time, I am thankful.

 

MY FRIENDS:

Today is NATIONAL WEAR PURPLE FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AWARENESS Day.

I will be wearing a purple dress in honor of those who survive and thrive after experiencing domestic violence.

And in honor of those who did not survive.

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