Priviledged

The other night we went out to dinner with some wonderful friends. Our friends are fantastic, in fact this post is about our friends - all of them, but through our discussions at dinner my mind wondered. It is apparent that some of our friends are a little better off than we are. Don't get me wrong, I know there are lots of people in the world and probably even down the street that are worse off than us, but I just started thinking. What defines a life as privileged? Is it what we do or have? I've never been skiing, ridden a jet ski, owned a new couch, bought expensive clothes, we don't have cable or new cars or even grass growing in our front yard. When Levi was born I didn't buy him new nursery furniture - not because I didn't want to, but I simply couldn't afford it. I guess you could say I was having a little pity party about all the things I didn't have and wasn't able to do. Don't we all go through moments like those? Then it dawned on me...I am privileged. My privileged life may be different than others, but it's a privileged and blessed life nonetheless. I had the best childhood of anyone I know. I lived near my grandparents and cousins and was able to make lasting friendships with them because of it. We spent many summers playing outside, digging in the dirt, going to Jenny's "school", jumping on trampolines, watching Disney movies, swinging in the tire swing, kicking our jellies off and onto the roof of our trailer, watching my dad build our house, singing The Little Mermaid a million times (come on girls join with me...Look at this stuff, isn't it neat?...), celebrating holidays together, and going through difficult times together such as job losses, miscarriages, and deaths. Being able to count on these people makes my life amazing and completely blessed. The moments I've shared with family and friends has made me who I am today. I don't think I would trade these moments for any amount of money or opportunity. I've been able to travel (a little), go to college, start a family, pay my bills, worship freely, stay at home with my growing boy, and put dinner on the table every night. What is more privileged than that? So in honor of all those people who helped me make these memories and supported me along the way - I say thank you! I'm glad you're part of my life. I hope you all feel as blessed as I do.