I turned 41 today. I marvel at my age because it always seemed to me that to be 41 was to be quite up there in age. At the same time I know I'm older and I'm glad of it. I have a four-year old daughter and I enjoy being her Daddy and would not trade it for anything. I do sometimes look back at what I was able to do in my twenties and wish I could reclaim some of that. But at the same time I shake my head at how much of a moron I was back then and how much more I truly had to learn.

I know one of the things I'm going to have to do in the coming months is de-clutter my life some. There are too many demands on my time and I need to clean out those that are not as important. I've already reached a point where I'm almost never online to chat anymore (something else I miss but can do little about), and I fear I will have to draw back more than I would like. I cannot do everything, and those things I need to do are with my family. No, I'm not leaving FA, but I expect I will have to cut back on comments and the like.

I look over my birthday journal from last year and I shake my head. I wanted to do more writing and more reading and I've only manage a little of either. I still hope I can turn that around but I'm not confidant. Angie is growing up and I need to teach her and be there for her. Most of my reading is in books to her. We've been doing a lot of Beatrix Potter this year (she recognizes Peter Rabbit, Jeremy Fisher, Tom Kitten, Jemima Puddleduck, Tom Thumb, and Hunca Munca) and I hope to add some Dr. Seuss too.

I have already survived Cancer. I have white hairs in my beard (I truly am a greymuzzle). I have had to put two dogs to sleep. I've been to the Rockies, Mt. Rushmore, Devil's Tower, Bar Harbor, Disney World, Big Bend Texas, and the CN Tower of Toronto. I have ridden a horse through the desert. I have navigated class V white water rapids. I have climbed mountains. I have seen geysers. I have gone skinny-dipping. I've swum in mountain lakes. I have had snowball fights in the Summer. I have fawned and marveled over dozens of Museums. I have traveled from the East Cost to the West Coast of the United States in a VW Camper. I have built sandcastles. I have enjoyed roller coasters. I have been to the Symphony Orchestra. I have played in a Band. I played piano at both my sister's and my brother's wedding. I was in Space Academy twice. I have a PhD in Mathematics. I love my job. I was fired from one of my jobs and nearly fired from a second. I have voted in every election I was eligible. I have marched in twelve fursuit parades, eleven with my Rat suit. I have short stories published in furry anthologies. I went fishing with my Dad every year as a kid. I have flipped a canoe and a kayak while I was in it. I rode a kayak on the ocean waves. I have been to the top of a lighthouse. I've seen Whales in the Ocean. I've been stung by jellyfish. I've had Poison Oak and Poison Ivy more times than I want to remember. I have seen a total Solar Eclipse. I have a wife of seventeen years and a beautiful daughter who loves me and wants to spend every moment playing with me. I have loving parents who taught me to love learning and to love this world. I have three brothers and one sister who have always been friends as well as family and with whom I shared so much of my life and whom I wish to spend more. I have been called to the Catholic Church by its beauty, history, and truth. I have spent hours in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament and shed tears in sorrow and in loving gratitude. I have been blessed beyond count and I could go on for hours with all that I have received in my 41 years here on this Earth.

I feel as if I have only given a tiny morsel for all I have received. I can never give enough and must not let that discourage me. The tiny sacrifices of each day, the quiet moments that I could never herald will speak more voluminously on my last day then all the vistas and wonders there is to behold. I can only express my gratitude and thanks for the blessings I've received. I am also grateful that I have had the joy of sharing them with many of you over the years. I hope that each of you receives blessings without count and that on your next birthday you run out of time to recall them all!

Dominus vobiscum