Thankful

I made the challenge in my sermon on Sunday for us to actually list what we are thankful for.  It is easy to list off the traditional/assumed list...family, friends, good health, shelter, food, clothes, etc.  Our thanks can be so generic.  I also wonder who most of us are giving thanks to?  In a season where our culture jumped from Halloween to Christmas in a blink of a week, perhaps I am feeling a little protective of Thanksgiving.

There is of course, no real retail incentive for Thanksgiving as a holiday.  It is one day.  We gather.  We eat.  We sit around.  It is over.  Perhaps there is a prayer or a family activity connected to sharing our thoughts and feelings, but mostly it is a day devoid of a common liturgy or larger purpose.

Give thanks?  I think many people can make the list, but then who are we thanking?  For so many people I think they feel they only have themselves to thank for the state of their lives.  Abundance they thank themselves.  Scarcity they blame others, or some circle in on themselves.  Gone is the common thought that in all things we give thanks to God.

I made my list.  On it are the generic things I listed above.  But there are some unique to only me.

~that profound grief has passed, replaced by a new normal...a stage that feels more comfortable with each passing day.
~that energy and clarity have returned to my brain.  Hormones and biochemistry are amazing.
~for friends who listen and understand the craziness of my life without judgment.  Or trying to fix it.
~for my own confidence in speaking up and for finding peace in the times when it is best to remain quiet.
~for the recognition that more 'stuff'--food, clothes, nicknacks and 'pretties'--won't actually make me feel better.  (learning curve still pretty high on this one...)
~for facebook and the connection to friends and family it brings me on a daily basis.
~for the ability to write my thoughts.

Happy Thanksgiving to you.  I hope that it becomes more a way of being than a 'day' on the calendar or merely a meal before our shopping trip. :)