It's The Little Things

We all have things from our childhood that are painful to remember and if we dwell on them long enough they eat away at us like a cancer. How often do we actually dwell on the good instead? I was thinking on this one day and decided to make a list of all of the little things that I could remember from my childhood that made me happy. I actually surprised myself when I came up with this list and realized that it's the little things in life that can make the difference.
The Little Things I Cherish About My Childhood:
A kind neighbor bringing us Easter Baskets
Watching Batman and Robin on a color TV at my girlfriend's house
Playing Spud after supper with the neighborhood kids
Swimming in a pond
Going with my big brother on his paper route and feeling like his helper
Catching lightning bugs in a jar and then bringing them in my bedroom and turning out the light
Ice skating on a pond in the woods with a bon-fire to warm up by
Tobogganing down the steepest hill I could find
Standing underneath Niagra Falls
Riding on the Fire truck in the 4th of July parade
Getting free samples of chocolate at Hershey Park
Making homemade ice cream
Playing monopoly as a family and eating homemade fudge
Riding my Grandma's bike with my sister at the front and me at the back, going down a very steep hill and being scared to death!
Dancing with my sister to the new Monkees album we got
Going to my friend's house and swimming in her pool
Trick or Treating with our friends and filling pillowcases so full of candy we could barely carry them home
Tagging along with my Dad as he videotaped high school football games
Listening to my friend practise her violin(she now teaches violin lessons to children at a well known conservatory)
An older lady taking me to Vacation Bible School in a Mustang.....to this day, I want a Mustang!
My 10th birthday; it was the only time I had a birthday "Party" and I was allowed to invite some friends
Mom's Apple pies
These are just some of the little things that I came up with and I know there are many more if I let my brain take me there. I challenge you to try it. Put aside some of the hurt and think on some of the little things and if we put enough of the little things together they add up and make us realize....there is much to be thankful for.