What do you take for granted, Part Two

Followup to a comment in my November 1 post and a separate post written November 2. In the latter, I posed the following question:

So, my question for my readers: what is an extraordinary thing in your life that you take for granted?

Mrs. Loquacious (author of the November 1 comment) has answered the question by listing twelve things that she takes for granted. She prefaced them with this comment:

In listing just a meagre selection of the many overlooked blessings in my life, it is evident that for the most part, I am an ingrate.

Go here to see Mrs. Loquacious' list. Here are her first, second, and third items:

* clean, running water in hot and cold temperatures whenever I need it

* a collection of technology (digital camera, lap top, cell phone with camera, mp3 player, digital voice recorder, DVD/VCR/TV) that I can use to communicate (or be communicated with)

* the freedom to read my Bible and pray in my classroom with my students

And click here to see the 10...no 11 items [1] listed by Cristina. Here are her fourth, fifth, and sixth items:

*That we have a roof over our heads that is "small" to us, but 1000% nicer than the places other people call home.
*That I can think for myself and make good decisions for myself and my family.
*That i'm not cookoo like some people who lose it and do idiotic things!

Al-Ahram has a different take on the topic:

It appears to be an inherent part of human nature to take essentials in life for granted. It starts with life itself, and extends to man-made inventions that have fast become the norm. From thick woollen coats and warming, knee-high socks, to instant, mobile, and portable everything. We think it's a given that we have a roof to sleep under, shoes to wear and food to eat. And so, conveniently, we take them all for granted.

One of those essential elements of life -- a seeming bare necessity for over one-sixth of the world's population -- is football. "The football" -- be its modern-day or ancient form -- is one of the largest, global unifying pillars of cultures, nationalities, ages, races and religions. And so naturally, we take this black and white creation of mankind entirely for granted.

Andrew Tobias chimed in:

Half the people on earth live on less than two dollars a day. A billion people go to bed hungry every night and a quarter of the people on earth never get a clean glass of water. Like most of us, I tend to ignore that and get annoyed when there’s traffic or my cell phone drops a call.

And I'll close with one last source:

Matthew 6:25-34 (New International Version)
New International Version (NIV)
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society

25"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
28"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

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[1] I'm not officially tagging this as a post for the big conference that's going to take place in San Francisco, but perhaps some of you may understand the "10...no 11" reference.

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