By Susan H.
Another Thanksgiving has come and gone. Every year I maintain my resolve that I will not allow holiday business to rob me of the true meaning behind Thanksgiving - a time for giving thanks. Yet each year I feel as though that resolve gets swallowed up by a giant turkey vulture.
I know I am not alone with the directions my thoughts wander. None of which even slightly resemble thankfulness. Usually, my first thought is, “Christmas is right around the corner.” I will appropriately follow that thought up with two simple words, “Black Friday.”
How is it that I have completely skipped over Thanksgiving in an attempt to rush around for Christmas? Eventually reality wakes me up and my focus will at least be on the appropriate holiday. Unfortunately, still my questions haunt me, “Should I make pumpkin or apple pie, sausage or cornbread stuffing, turnips or mashed potatoes?
Finally, all the food preparation is done. The meal is cooked and the family gathers around the table. A prayer of Thanksgiving is offered and we each have the opportunity to thank God for something he has done in our lives. It is at this point that I wonder, “Choose one thing?” There are so many. Where do I begin? Should I say something really big or really spiritual? As I reflect on God’s goodness, I realize how I am thankful for the small as well as the not so small things in my life. I am also sorry that I allow life to rush past without taking time to enjoy those moments that are truly important in life.
I think next year I will follow my daughter’s example. She is teaching my two year old granddaughter the true meaning of thankfulness. She stuck a straggly tree branch in a pot and each night the family would gather and place a construction paper leaf on a branch with something they were thankful for. One night my granddaughter was thankful for cookies and her father was thankful for her bedtime. It’s the small things that count!
"Give thanks in all circumstances for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."
1 Thessalonians 5:18
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