Thanksgiving 2016

It's easy to get down on yourself when your out on the road on a long weekend that celebrates family. But all it takes is a short conversation with the person you are most thankful to have in your life to put the world back into order.

When I'm out on the road I call my wife Debbie every evening. It's the daily phone call that puts any fears to rest that a trucker's partner must live with and puts this truckers mind at ease knowing that all is well on the home front.

But last night was special. Debbie was looking after our two grandchildren, Nate, 5 years old, and Morgan age 3. Debbie told me that they decided to play "baby bears" at one point during the day and needed Grandma to help them build a cave. The cave is always constructed of pillows, blankets, cushions off the furniture and so on. The two bears then decided it was time to search for food to store away for the winter. Taking that cue my wife put some treats in paper muffin cups and hid them throughout the house for the "bears" to find and gather for the winter. When all the food had been gathered it was time to sit in the cave and picnic on the spoils.

The two little bears told Grandma that they should come to Grandma's house every Saturday now and play this game. Ha ha ha!

I'm thankful for the incredible support I receive from my wife day in and day out. It is so easy to become centered on your own daily challenges when you live on the road as a trucker. But that partner we have at home deals with all the stresses of separation that we endure on the road and the worry of the hazards we face that are completely beyond their control. But more importantly a truckers partner fills the void the trucker leaves behind every week playing duel roles of mother AND father or grandmother AND grandfather.

So last nights phone call to home exemplified the love we share in our home. I'm so incredibly thankful for my wife and all the love and life we have shared together over the past 37+ years and I'm so thankful there are many years of sharing yet to come. I couldn't do this job without her by my side.