Thanksgiving Blessings

Blog Post Revisited!

For too many people that I know, this Thanksgiving will be a little less joyful.  Some have lost a parent and will have to to take over as the main provider of memories.  Others have lost siblings which brings a myriad of emotions and change in their lives.  A family member is nursing her son for the past month after he was in a very serious accident and suffered brain damage.  The blessing here (and it is enormous), is that he is alive at all.

Yesterday, my oldest daughter had her annual doctor’s appointment, as hoped and expected all is well.  Since we had to make our way there in the midst of a nor’easter, I commented to my daughter how grateful I was that we had a dependable car.

“Remember last year”

“Yeah, it’s kind of nice not having a heart attack every time we are on the road.”

“I agree!”

As I checked out from her appt, I said, “Thank God we have insurance!  Remember last year??”  She smiled and said, “Yes.”

We got in the car and I said, “I am so grateful you are well.”    “Me too.”

As we trudged through the nor’easter with the roads full of greasy slush we made our way up and down the hills…slowly.  In my rear-view mirror I saw a man (who was right behind me) go off the road.  He wasn’t doing anything in particular to make that happen, he just hit a spot.  Thankfully, there were no cars coming in the opposite direction.  I just stayed focused and kept praying.  As we approached my hill (my road is at the bottom), the worst of them, I came to a spot where cars get stuck going up and coming down.  They end up in the ditches that are on either side (much like the man in the truck). The cars going up don’t have enough verve and traction to make the steep incline and the cars coming down, trying to avoid them sometimes over correct and sometimes they just have no choice if they want to avoid the other car. But there is a tiny side street that I try to catch as I head down which lets me bypass that particular stretch and come down to my street gently. I always give thanks for this little side road…and I do again today. I also give thanks for low gear.  As we finally pulled into our driveway, I just said, “Thank God we can stay home!”  And we laughed shaking all the way inside the door.

Today, I am grateful for how far we have come in the past year even though it really may not seem it.  I am grateful for a loving family that constantly increases and I continue to pray that we get to stay together a lot longer.  I could not imagine losing any one of them but I know it is possible. Today, I am grateful for the modern medicine that has enabled our dear one to still have her only child…her baby.  Even at twenty, he still is.  I am grateful that we are both gainfully employed and that our children want good lives and try to make choices based in that goal.  I am grateful for all of the people who encourage others everyday, especially those who read this blog.   I am deeply grateful for my beloved mothers who spend the week every year preparing the meal we look most forward to!

May every one of your days be guided by a heart full of gratitude and may you know how richly blessed you are!