Thanks For All That Matter

My birthday came and went like any other day.

And I realized all my birthdays had a lot of things in common. One, it is always sunny. I don't think I've ever had a birthday with rain before. I think it's probably because it's right smack in the last quarter of May but I'd like to think that I've been blessed that way -- blue skies n gentle summer breezes included.

I woke up late, and went to work. The mood I was in was just like all my other birthdays -- reflective, subdued, pensive. There's something about another year of life that gets recorded in the books that gets one thinking, well about almost everything. I look at how lucky I am to have lived this long because I've had patients younger than I, who had the misfortune of losing their lives to disease.↲

I've never made a fuss about the day itself. If I'd meet you in the hospital hallways or text me a birthday greeting, I'd be equally touched and happy that you took time to remember, but I usually don't go shouting it out to the world.

I say a prayer of thanks to Him who has blessed me with all I need in this life -- the grace of love, the safety of family, the company of great friends, the luxury of talent, the challenge of work, and all that matters. Some people search lifetimes for most of the things going for me, and I'm eternally thankful to Him for letting me get some glimpses of heaven here. Sure, I know there still will be tougher times up ahead, but like they say, these never last, tough people do.