2-3-10 grateful for today

1. My wonderful friend who is more of a producer than I am
2. My emotional growth
3. My adorable dog
4. My car running well
5. My creative abilities and talents that fill my life with abundance
6. My life
7. Amazement
8. Acceptance of all that is (not just the good stuff)
9. Hot dogs!!
10. Music

I got up to number 6 and I noticed how self-centered I am. All of 1 through 6 start with "My". As if I own all of these things. Okay, I do own 2, 4, 5, and 6 (and also 3 depending on which perspective I'm looking at him). I do not "own" my wonderful friend. I am very grateful that she is in my life and we are able to share our lives and our passions and our "scannerisms" with each other. I do "own" my dog in the legal sense of owning a dog. I am very grateful that he is a part of my life. Mostly he is not presented with a choice of being with me, I live in an apartment and am required to walk him on a leash. There have been three times in his life where he was presented with a choice. He was off his leash (all 3 times by mistake) and started to run away. All three times he came right back to me within seconds of running away.

I do have an intense fear of losing my dog. A year and a half ago he was diagnosed with cancer. They told me it was an aggressive one and gave him only a few months to live. Yes, do the math, a year and a half is much much longer than a few months. I decided against treatment and chose instead to do affirmations with him daily. I chose the cancer affirmation from Louise Hayes "You can Heal your Life". And I came up with two others on my own and I held him and we stood in front of a mirror. I said them to him every morning 7 times and every night 7 times. I also started doing ones for myself. My dog is still around and shows no symptoms. He is full of life and love. I don't do the affirmations much anymore. Only occasionally out of gratitude and a ritual of honor do I hold him in front of the mirror and do them. I'm incredibly grateful for my dog.

Well, that's my 15 minutes!