A.J. Cooper

Sitting in my favorite chair watching my wife’s thoughts come alive on canvas, I’m reflecting on the many things for which I am truly thankful.

I am thankful to Fairhope and Baldwin County for welcoming me back to hang up my shingle after an absence of 20-plus years. I’m thankful for the welcome given to my wife by the local artistic community.

I am thankful for the thousands of flowers that bloom in vivid colors and brighten everyone’s day. That Fairhope’s signature is our crown of flowers is a blessing to behold.

The Bay, in all her majesty, that both soothes and stimulates and surprises abundantly through the phenomenon of jubilee. And one cannot be too grateful for the incredible sunsets along Scenic 98. I am thankful for the ducks, the dolphins, the pelicans and the manatees.

Thankful I am for the artists like Barbara, Nall and Bill, Randy and Dean, Sonny, Winston and Jean. I am grateful for the authors all and the bookstores: Page and Palette and Over the Transom.

High on the list if the 140-year-old Twin Beech AME Zion Church with its breathtaking, makes-you-wanna-cry wooden ceiling, and for her sister churches throughout the county, with their spirit, their faith, their choirs and their world-class musicians, the mens choruses and the organists — and do not forget the young men on the drums.

I am thankful for the peace officers with their tough, mean looks, who are loving, kind and have hearts of gold behind their stern exteriors.

I am thankful for the Mobile Press Register, especially for its fight for open government and full disclosure and the local press for being inquisitive, for sharing the small news with the large so all can be in the know.

Gratitude for the love of family, friends and associates who support me in my causes and are there when needed the most. The Angelos and Dawns, the JoAnnes, Elizabeths and Evans, the Marias and Jasons, the Rabys and Lawrences, the Pats and the Harveys, the Kellys and Karins, the Neros and the Quaites and the Hollimons and Kilborns — and the list goes on.

It seems to me that during this season of thanksgiving, these are just a few of the things for which I have to be thankful. And as I try to peep over my wife’s shoulder, I am thankful when she reminds me, “Not yet, honey. The picture’s not ready yet.”

A.J. Cooper may be contacted at: itseemstome@cooperlaw.info.