Tag: My father

Thankful – 2024

The final weeks of 2024 are upon us. On this Thanksgiving day, I find myself thinking of the things I am thankful for. I know that many readers will think, “Oh boy. Here we go again. Another list from Keith.” Let me ask you – How do you feel? I have found by reflecting on the things I am thankful for, I gain a new sense of happiness. You can too! Try it, and see.

I am thankful for:

  • My wife. Her love, patience and understanding mean so much to me. She is the glue that holds our family together. I fall in love with her over and over again.
  • My children. I have been blessed with 4 of the most amazing children. Each of them is so different from the other. Each of them a distinct personality. Each of them smart, beautiful, handsome, and funny! Thoughts of them fill my heart daily.
  • My Faith. I am thankful for the Bible and the knowledge I gain from reading it.
  • My Savior Jesus Christ. The never ending and unconditional love that He showed for me at Calvary’s Cross, well, there is no way to express how thankful I am for that.
  • My father. I am so grateful to still have him around. His guidance, his advice, his influence, and his laughter are things I truly appreciate.
  • My brother. For two kids who beat the snot out of each other growing up, we are very close. Closer than ever, actually. His support and love for my family overflows. I treasure the little texts or pictures we send to each other, many that need no explanation.
  • My friends. There are many people that fall into this category. From my best friends of over 50 years to radio friends, college friends, church friends, and more. Friendship is something I do not take for granted. Thank you for being my friend.
  • Memories. Again, there is so much to place into this category. The memories of loved ones who have passed away. The memories of the bad times, which makes the good times even more special. The memories of special events. The memories of joy and the memories of sadness. The memories that come with a book, movie, TV show or a song. The memories that an old photo bring to mind.
  • My job. I am grateful to have found a line of work that allows me to provide for my family. I am also thankful that I get to help people while doing it.
  • Our home. We are blessed to have a warm bed to sleep in. A couch to snuggle on. A kitchen to cook in. A roof under which happy memories are made.
  • Modern technology. While not all of it is good, I do like being able to spellcheck my work. It is also nice being able to search just about anything on Google.
  • You. I am thankful that you are reading this. I am thankful that you read and react to my blogs. I am thankful for you willingly choosing to follow this page.

The above list is small portion of my list of things to be thankful for. In I Thessalonians 5:18, the Bible says simply, “In everything, give thanks!” Doing that will change your heart. It causes you to look at things differently. You find it easier to cope with things. I aids in your understanding. It is also one of the hardest things to do. But I trust that it is what we all need to do. Give thanks in everything today and always.

May you and yours have a very happy and blessed Thanksgiving.

Your friend,

Keith

Friday Photo Flashback

Time for another Friday Photo Flashback. I was going to say that I am not digging too deep for this week’s picture, but when I realized that it is probably at least 10-15 years old. Is that considered old? You decide.

This is one of my favorite photos of me with my dad and brother. This photo used to come up for both of them if they called me. With each new phone and contact transfer, the photo got more and more pixilated. I wasn’t even sure I still had a copy of the original until I found it saved on a hard drive.

My brother, as you may recall, lives in Ohio. He usually gets up to Michigan a couple times a year. This was taken during one of those visits.

We had obviously gone to lunch or breakfast at Leo’s Coney Island, because we are in the parking lot there. My dad and brother must have drove up to see us. If I had to guess this may be around 2009 because I am wearing my B95 coat (and I still have some hair). I’m guessing that this was springtime as the trees in the background are still green.

What I love about this picture (and many subsequent ones of the three of us) is that there is no doubt we are all related. The older my brother and I have gotten, the more we started looking alike. The older we get, I also feel like we look more like my dad.

What I hate about this picture is knowing when it was taken. I was still with my ex and I’m sure that any time I was allotted to see my brother and father was based loosely around whatever she had to do or wanted me to do. My time with them was never as much as it should have been. To this day, I look back and wish I knew then what I know now. I lost out on a LOT of time with my family.

On the bright side, I feel like my relationship with both my father and brother are stronger now than they have ever been. For that, I am glad. I love this picture and love them both.