What's Up, Doc? Time to Count Those Blessings

What do I have to give thanks for? This past year has been rough, especially being injured and unable to work until I was approved to have shoulder surgery in August.

I have many many things to be very thankful for in 2014. Following are just a few:

1) I have a loving and supportive family. My wife Karen and our daughters Daniela, Sarah, Holly, and Megan are wonderful people and understanding of the health problems I encountered this year.

2) Daughters Daniela and Sarah are playing water polo. I don’t understand the game but they’re enjoying themselves. Holly is playing volleyball and Megan just finished another soccer season. No couch potatoes here! Such an active family!

3) I live in a great community. A clean environment, booming businesses, a friendly atmosphere. Menifee is a terrific place to raise a family.

4) The Menifee Union School District focuses on the children. Any actions taken by teachers and administrators are undertaken for the benefit of the children who attend MUSD schools.

5) The leadership of the MUSD is terrific. The other school board members and Dr. Steve Kennedy, District Superintendent, work in tandem to provide an education that is second to none. There are no personal unseen agendas. I have thoroughly enjoyed serving on the school board these past six years. I look forward to many more years.

6) I am feeling normal and back to teaching kindergarten. It is impossible to feel down when hanging out with 30 energetic and enthusiastic 5-year-olds.

7) I passed my orange belt test in Taekwondo. I was shocked when I was told that I would be testing and shocked again when I actually passed.

8) The people. There are fantastic people living and working in Menifee.

2014 is almost at an end. There are many things about 2014 I won’t miss. There are many more that I will always remember with great appreciation. I am looking forward to a great 2015!

Randall Freeman and his family have lived in Menifee since 1993. Randy teaches kindergarten in Perris and his wife Karen teaches first grade here in Menifee at Freedom Crest Elementary School. They are the parents of four daughters: Daniela, 17, and 13-year-old triplets Sarah, Holly, and Megan. Randy earned his PhD in early childhood education in 2011 and has served on the Menifee Union School Board since 2008. As he explains it, this makes him Karen's boss for the first and only time in the marriage. His column will appear here every other Tuesday.