It has been a crazy year. As you may imagine, life with a couple of active and growing toddlers is not generally for the faint-hearted or lazy. Most of our time is spent feeding them or cleaning them (or more likely, cleaning up after them), and what little time is left is usually reserved for work (and on rare occasions, sleep). However, I would not change a thing and I dearly love our little darlings. To be honest, there are times when my unconditional love for them can be tested a bit (such as the time Alexandra "colored" one of the kitchen chairs with crayons), but ultimately I thank the Lord for bringing them to us and for every moment I get to spend with them. I am also thankful that the unplanned trips to the doctor's office (or the emergency room) have all ultimately worked out in our favor.
I am thankful for my wife, Zoya. I am thankful for her support and unconditional love. I am thankful for her holding me accountable for the things that I say and do (though, there are times when I am a little less thankful for this). I am amazed at her willingness to leave behind almost all of her friends and family, to move to the opposite side of the globe to live with me in a land where she did not (initially) understand the language or the culture. She is the love of my life, my best friend and the mother to my children. Thank you, God for bringing us together and granting her the patience to deal with me.
The past year has been a good one for my relations with the rest of the family as well. I have reconnected with my half brother, Gene. My bond with my sister Shelly has grown stronger and closer, as has my relationship with my mom. While I don't think my dad and I have grown much closer, we have communicated more and that is a step in the right direction. I have been able to interact more with my cousins and become reacquainted. For all of this, I am thankful.
Meanwhile, the world is still a scary place. In some ways, it has gotten scarier over the past year and I fully understand that my continued safety has been provided by the armed forces of the United States scattered across the globe and the uniformed first responders closer to home. These are the men and women who have often made personal sacrifices to ensure that our family (and yours) has little to fear from whatever fate , or the bad guys have in store for us (unfortunately, there is not much they can do about Wall Street bankers… or Congress for that matter). Most of the time, their efforts go unheeded because they do their job so well that the things they protect us from never even get close to us. Thank you all, and God bless you and your families.
I am thankful for the rights and privileges that I am blessed with as a citizen of the United States. I understand that these come at a price and that includes a certain level of personal responsibility to exercise these rights and privileges while respecting the same rights and privileges of others. I also understand that though these rights are self-evident, there is no natural guarantee to protect them, and I am thankful for the wisdom, foresight and sacrifice of the previous generations of Americans to make these rights more than empty ideals on a piece of paper.
I am thankful to God for all that I have and for all that I have experienced. When things have gone my way, I thanked God for the blessings that he brought my way. When things went less well, I was thankful for the learning opportunities and the insight that I gained as a result.
Finally, I am thankful for all of you. I am thankful for your continued love, friendship and assistance. I hope that all of you and your families are able to have a safe, warm and peaceful holiday, together under the same roof. I thank God for bringing each and every one of you into my life. Take care and God bless you all! Happy Thanksgiving!