Finding Gratitude

It’s the time of year to count blessings and take stock of the many reasons we have to be thankful, despite hardships and losses that may be on our minds. The staff of the Stone County Leader will leave the more solemn offerings of thanks to individuals and families to share over the holiday. Instead, we leave you this list to help lighten the mood.

We’re thankful for ...

• The new downtown sidewalk. It’s quite the looker (and ankle-saver).

• The new streetlights along above-mentioned sidewalk. They add a pleasing ambiance to the square, especially now that darkness comes so early.

• Being able to provide our subscribers with a full digital archive of past issues of the Leader so that researching can be completed from a computer.

• Institutions like Ozarka College that continue to expand services. The prospect of having a welding school here in Mountain View is encouraging, not only for the economy but for the individuals who will be learning an important trade.

• Blue collar professionals who work in trades that aren’t glamorous but are much more important than many of the jobs for which people are paid big money.

• Healthcare workers who continue to fight the fight despite the many challenges.

• Grandchildren.

• Public servants who conduct themselves with the belief that they are there to serve constituents rather than the other way around.

• Mountain View’s Christmas Committee, past and present, for the hours they devote to making the town look festive.

• The countless volunteers who make this community what it is. From our vantage point on Main Street, we see how much work goes into projects like the iris beds. Those flowers don’t tend themselves!

• Lasagna.

• Vaccines.

• Robbie’s 50/50 burgers at Rainbow Cafe.

• Streaming television services.

• Living in a town where Termite is a local celebrity and not an insect infestation.

• Co-workers like Steve Watkins, who keep us mindful of the important things in life, one of which is him!

Don’t miss the lists offered by Mountain View preschoolers and kindergartners, also in this issue.

Happy Thanksgiving from our newspaper family to yours.