Gratitude

The past several days I've been spending time with a friend for whom gratitude is as natural as breathing.  I am sure if I asked, MD would be honest with me about some of my shortcomings, but instead, I hear about how wonderful a person I am, how beautiful a place upstate New York is, what great food we're eating, what marvelous memories we're creating.  It's enough to put a saint to shame!

My memories of the past several days have included falling and twisting my knee, and having it so painful I hopped to the bathroom.  That's quite a feat for me.  So I laid on my bed while MD happily went out for a walk, possibly looking for a pharmacy and some stuff to bring down the swelling and ease the pain for me.  There wasn't a pharmacy open.  And MD got caught in the rain.  The poor guy came in, hair soaked and mangy looking, and at first glance it looked as though he'd gotten a new, snazzy shirt.  But on second glance, it was clear that it was simply about as rained upon as it could get.  I laughed.  He went off to his room to dry off and change, and the host came in to see how she could offer to help.  She thought of a glass of wine.  Ahhhh...perfect.  Pillows for propping my knee and  wine.  Which put me out like a light. 

Today I sent my friend back home, and I came back home this evening to be meowed at by cats, demanding their evening repast.  I just said:  "Complain, complain, complain...didn't you learn anything from MD?"  But then I didn't change my ways either.  I'm still moaning about my poor leg, and now my shoulder is added to the mix, because I've been using it to help me stand upright.  Poor Caris. 

Maybe someday I'll weigh in on the saintly side, instead of the curmudgeon side of things.  In the meantime, maybe I'll have a glass of wine and get a good night's sleep.  It won't get to be a habit, I promise!