Hard to be thankful.

Life seems to preclude thankfulness. There is a sense of struggle even to our day-to-day activities. The thinker in me wants everything to be elegant and simple. It wants to find the easy and efficient route and it is frustrated when this route is closed or otherwise inaccessible. However, the reasoning part of me also knows that God is in control and provides us with everything we need. This means we should be nothing if not thankful.

It is not in my nature to talk about good things. I do not default to a positive state of mind. I am not an optimist. I don't see the bright side. I find it difficult to trust others. I have been trying to alter these truths throughout my life with very limited success. It occurs to me, though, that spending my time here talking exclusively about struggles and disappointments is just another example of living in hopelessness. So, I am going to do useful work instead. I am going to make an effort to daily talk about and revel in something I am and should be thankful for. No matter how insignificant that thing might be.

To that end, I am going to start off with something very small and unimportant. By way of disclaimer, I am purposely not starting with something of overwhelming value like Esther or Malachi because I believe if I do, then this exercise will devolve into an effort to top the last thing I said I was thankful for. I can't make this a competition because, while I am creative, I am not creative enough - or, rather, I am not motivated enough to continue under those constraints.

Today I am thankful for my drill. I've had a few drills over the years. My two previous drills were gifted to me by my dad. They were battery powered drills and they served us faithfully for a long time. But the drill I am thankful for today is not those drills. Those drills' batteries ran down and gave out over time. They stopped working. In fact, they would often stop working during a project, which proved especially frustrating. But when their batteries finally stopped taking any charge at all, I looked around for replacement batteries. These were difficult to find. And then, when I did find some, they were inordinately expensive. To the tune of $75/battery. I found that I could buy a corded drill for less than I could buy a replacement battery. So, I did a little research and bought a corded drill. Which I am thankful for.

My drill is trusty and strong. Perhaps a bit too strong, but this has taught me some finesse. It is always ready when I need to tackle a project. It allows me to get things done. Yesterday, it allowed me to finish the birthday present I was making for Esther. Without my trusty drill, I could never have made the present for her. In conclusion, I am thankful for my drill. I am happy to have it. God didn't need to let me have a working drill. He chose to. And I am thankful for it.