Ten Physical Abilities I'm Grateful For:

1. The Gift of Sound--I enjoy listening to wonderful music, to talented musicians, to my sweet husband's voice saying prayer, to young children playing, to the rain hitting my roof---this list could go on and on.  I am thankful for my ears and my ability to hear.
2. The Gift of Sight--these are not in order of importance--just as I think of them.  How lovely is the sunset!  I love color and the sunset has some beautiful hues.  I love the faces of those in our family and friends, too.  I love animals, watching them, amazed at them and I love beauty in all of nature and in art, watching the ballet.  
3.  I am thankful for the sense of touch.  There's nothing like a warm hug, a kiss on the cheek, someone massaging my back.  I like holding a baby and feeling its soft cheeks.  I like the warm water in a bath, the cool breeze on a summer's eve.
4. I'm grateful for the wonder of this amazing piece of machinery that I call my body.  All of its parts work together and in tandem to perform the work of pumping blood, take a breath of fresh air, process the food that I take into my body and extracting the nutrients, while discarding the waste!  I love the mobility of a finely tuned body, or at least one that I'm taking care of (when I take care of myself).  At my age, I'm losing mobility, but I remember what it was like when I could do anything, go places, bend and pick pecans, and I miss it.  And best of all, my body houses my spirit (that which is the essence of me).
5. I am thankful for the sense of taste, for the salty things, the sweetness of pecan pie, the refreshing taste of cantaloupe, and I even love the taste of some vegetables, especially if they're seasoned the Southern way.  
6.  I am grateful for rhythm in my bones!  In my psyche I guess.  I love to dance, keep time to the music, sway to the music of The Sound of Music.  I love to sing, when I have the voice for it.  Mostly, I love to sing with others, with people on tv, or along with the music of a CD.  
7. I am thankful for my hands.  I love using my hands; my mother never sat down without something to work on with her hands.  She crocheted throws out of colorful yarn; she made many of my dresses when I was growing up.  I learned to sew and make my own clothes.  I also learned to make bread, without a bread maker appliance.  I kneaded the bread and lathered it with butter when it came out of the oven (that makes the crust soft).  My mother taught me how to shell peas, pick blueberries, etc.  Using my hands has given me a deep satisfaction because it has to do with accomplishing something as opposed to accomplishing nothing.  With my hands I can play the piano, crack nuts, pat the earth over a newly planted seed, and best of all, my right hand can write using pencil and paper.  I love scrabble and sudoku, and sometimes do crosswords.  With two hands I can compose using a keyboard and computer.
8. I am grateful for the sense of smell.  There are good smells, bad smells, and smells that define an item, warn us of impending danger, help find the garden.  I love the smell of Christmas trees and roses.
9.  I am grateful for my brain.  It is a wonderful and very necessary part of my physical abilities.  It keeps my memories, helps me plan, and it soaks in tons of information, most of which I think important but could easily fall under the category of trivia.  
10. I'm thankful for my feet and legs, the ability to walk and stand and do stuff (like dance).  Through the mechanics of walking, I can wait on my husband who no longer can walk.  My legs and feet support my body while I do a little bit of caregiving, along with the attendant duties. What a privilege it is to work and move around and help others.