A Lot to Be Thankful For

A Lot to Be Thankful For

One plus to sowing wheat this close to Thanksgiving is that time spent on the tractor can be a time to reflect. I do not always have that luxury, but I have spent several hours going around and around this year. I have had the opportunity to think about some of the things that I am thankful for. Another thing that brought this to the forefront for me, interestingly enough, is Facebook. A lot of the folks on Facebook have been posting something everyday that they are thankful for. It shifted me into that gear and I believe it is good for all of us to stop and count our blessings.

First of all, I am thankful to live in a state like Oklahoma where our values are “the right kind”. And where, for the most part, people believe “if you don’t work, you don’t eat”, and they are not afraid to work. I am thankful to be a state representative and to be able to stand for my kind of people. I am not sure how I would get along in a mostly urban district, but a mostly rural district suits me pretty well. I am thankful for being able to live in rural Oklahoma and being able to enjoy the lifestyle that we have been able to provide for our family. I am glad that my kids have been able to grow up in a setting where they can see the stars at night.

Although I might not consider my girls true farm girls, they at least have had opportunities to do things like be in FFA and show animals, and they know that having room to breathe is a luxury. As a matter of a fact, my youngest daughter, Kelsey, has practically taught herself to drive in the pasture. She has a path worn into the grass and she does not like it to rain because it muddies up her practice track. I am thankful that my oldest daughter, Katy, has only one year left in her college education. I am also thankful, although I whine about it a lot, that we were able to provide that for her. I guess, while we are on the kids, I am thankful that our kids have, for the most part, been pretty good growing up. We have had our drama and neither are perfect but we have tried to raise them in church and impart some of our values on them and maybe some of them have stuck. I am thankful that Dede and I have had 25 years as husband and wife and both of us have enjoyed good health. Even though politics is tough on families, mine seems to be weathering the storm fairly well.

I am thankful for our freedom and for those who sacrificed to make sure that we do live in the greatest country on earth, free to decide what to do for a living and how to live our lives. I am thankful for good friends from all over the state, as well as the ones right down the road.

I am thankful for all the prayers and the people that cared during the tragedy that occurred early this summer with the loss of my assistant, Ashley Pena. It was a very dark time and there were prayer chains, blood donations and a tremendous outpouring of love that made that time much more bearable. I am thankful for the new Ashley in my life and the fact that God saw fit to send me someone equally as good.

I am thankful that we are not in the shape financially in our state that some other states are in. And, although things look bleak, I know they will get better and that our state and nation will make it through. I am thankful that Oklahomans are as tough a lot as we are. We live in a great spot on the map and I think everyday we should be thankful for who we are.

If you would like to contact me while I am at the capitol, please do not hesitate to send an email to donarmes@house.gov or call me at 1-800-522-8502.

And here’s a little something to think about as you go down the road:

“If a fellow isn't thankful for what he's got, he isn't likely to be thankful for what he's going to get.” -Frank A. Clark