I Am Thankful For…

Since it is Thanksgiving Day and Pat has already presented us with his list of what he is thankful for, I felt obligated to contribute my list. The thing is, it is not really a list per se. In fact, one sentence pretty much sums it all up for me. I am thankful for angels. Let me explain.

For many, an angel has religious connotations. Whether the religion is Christianity, Judaism or Islam, an angel is a spiritual supernatural being. I personally believe in spiritual angels. However, the spiritual angel is not the only type that I am thankful for. Once again, let me explain.

The New Oxford American Dictionary provides the following definitions of angel:

1. a spiritual being believed to act as an attendant, agent, or messenger of God, conventionally represented in human form with wings and a long robe.
2. a person of exemplary conduct or virtue.

Based on those two definitions, I would hazard a guess that we all have some sort of angels to be thankful for. Think about it for a moment and I am sure that you will begin to identify the angels in your own lives.

They may be the spiritual type based on your religious beliefs. Being Catholic, growing up I learned about Raphael, Gabriel and Michael. Another concept taught was that of guardian angels. Yet another sort of spiritual angel could be a loved one that has passed on. In that respect, I am thankful for my late grandma, Ermalinda Vagnoni. She was an angel while here on earth and remains one to this day.

The second definition of angel provides for a wide range of possibilities. I am sure that growing up, all of us has had a teacher or a coach that made a difference in our young lives. Maybe they helped you with something you could not comprehend or helped developing a certain skill. Maybe they just helped you fit it. Now as adults, this angel may be someone that has had a similar impact on your child’s life.

An additional variety of angels are role models. Once again it could be a teacher or coach, but personally, my “role model” angels are relatives. Not necessarily any one in particular, but a combination of the qualities of many. For example, I am thankful for my parents. They have shown me how to love, care and respect others. Also the entire Vagnoni clan for demonstrating how important family is. Funny thing about Italians. Finally, in the category of role models, I am thankful for my aunt Terri in California for illustrating how significant it is to not only listen, but to understand.

Yes, both types of angels are there to help us. A case in point is the angels that helped my godson Alex survive the 2007 holiday season. The spiritual kind guided the earthly angels as they fought from December 8th to Christmas Eve to keep him alive. A ruptured AVM (arteriovenous malformation), resulting in hemorrhaging in his brain, had both sets of angels working overtime. I am extremely thankful for that.

Where would we be without our angels? Who really knows? I know that I am thankful for Dr. Alfred Habel for helping me to delay what is inevitable for all human beings. I don’t know if he would appreciate being called angel, but he surely qualifies as one.

I am willing to bet that as you read this, you are coming up with people in your lives that fit the bill as angels. It could be a boss or a co-worker. Perhaps it is a clerk at a favorite store or your mailman. Is it the guy next door that you have known all your life or is it the stranger that was there when you needed help? Angels come in many shapes and forms.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention a very valuable type of angel – the friend. My “friend” angels are all over the world. Literally. From Kenosha, Wisconsin to Farmington Hills, Michigan. From St. Paul Minnesota to San Juan Capistrano, California. I even have an angel with an English accent. They are all angels for various reasons. They are there for me without being asked. And I am thankful for each and every one of them.

I truly believe we all have angels in our lives, whether we know it or not. Maybe you have a different name or term for your angels, but they are still angels nonetheless. So be thankful for them. Not only on Thanksgiving Day but every day. Until Next Time…