What I Am Thankful for This Thanksgiving?

Americans lead very hectic lives. There are children's appointments, preparing for the big presentation, returning a multitude of cell phone calls, working in spending time with our families, and trying to work in a few minutes to recharge our own batteries. We move through our days preoccupied with just keeping our head above water. Thanksgiving gives many a little time to reflect on what they are thankful for.

This year has highlighted the importance of spending time with family. In years past, I have conducted my life much like Adam Sandler in the movie Click. I have spent more time focused on my career then on my home life. This year my ex-wife decided that she does not want to make joint decisions. She took me back to court twice trying to get full custody. Both cases were ruled in my favor.

My job took me away from home a lot. My job was working as an Emergency Planning Analyst. My duties included writing emergency plans for schools, banks, and higher education institutions. My duties also included conducting site assessments of these facilities. Often, these duties took me away from home. I recognized that I could easily slip into old habits. I kept the job because, without a degree, I knew it would be tough to replace the salary.

My second wife and I celebrated our first anniversary. My second wife is a very supporting person. She believes in letting me pursue my professional life, however I see fit. My wake up call came when she started asking me when I was going to be off the road and when I could spend more time with her. I realized that I was standing on the precipice of returning into my old ways.

I am thankful that God (Allah, Karma, insert whatever you believe in here) provided me the foresight to recognize this. This realization allowed me to run away from the precipice's edge. I began reviewing my life and decided to make some drastic changes. I cultivated the ability to replace the majority of my income online and I quit my full time job.

At Thanksgiving many people reflect on what they have gained. They state that they are happy for their promotion, purchase of a new home, arrival of a new baby, getting married, or many other things. This Thanksgiving, I am thankful for what I was able to avoid. I am Thankful that I was able to recognize the precipice that I was about to fall into and move away from it. It required me making some hard decisions. In the long run, these decisions will strengthen my relationship with both my wife and my son. After all, when we reach the end of life our homes, our cars, our jobs are not what we reflect on. It is how we treated people and the people that we are leaving behind.