Still Giving Thanks
Below is a blog I wrote last week but never posted here. Though it is about giving thanks, I have to say remembering to be thankful is something I can work on everyday…not just Thanksgiving! I hope everyone is having a good week. This morning I’m going to run a few errands and then be interviewed by World Christian Radio. Oh! And I must write! I’m finally nearing the end of Eventide, the last book of my Days of Redemption trilogy. Happy Wednesday!
This week, while I’ve been buying turkeys, shopping for cranberries, comparing recipes, and coordinating my kids’ travel plans, I’ve also been giving thanks.
I love the Thanksgiving holiday. Actually, I don’t know anyone who doesn’t. It’s nice to look forward to a day where there are no expectations for gifts or special events. All my family looks forward to is the same meal we’ve had for twenty years, time for naps, and football games.
Of course I’m thankful for family and friends. My pets and my faith and my health. Instead, I thought I’d concentrate on a few little things that I probably take for granted too often but make my life so much sweeter.
I’m thankful for friendly people. I like being able to go to the coffee shop and chat with the barista, or discuss leeks in the grocery store line, or compare new sweaters with the receptionist at the dry cleaners. Those little snippets of conversation make the rest of my day happier.
I’m thankful for our USA Today newspaper that arrives every morning at the foot of our driveway. I’ve gotten this paper ever since I’ve been in college, and I really do enjoy seeing the news in all the different states I’ve lived in. Oh! And I’m really thankful when my husband goes out in the cold or rain and brings it in for me.
I’m thankful for my Kindle. I never thought I’d be the type of person to read an e-book. It turns out that I am. I really am thankful for being able to order a book immediately.
I’m thankful for hot bubble baths, and that my husband has always made sure that I have time (and hot water) for one. When our kids were little, he’d watch cartoons with them while ‘Mom had her bath’. Now when they come home from college, he won’t let anyone take a shower at night until I’ve had my bath. It’s a silly thing, but always appreciated by me.
I’m thankful for all the china that my parents gave to me before they passed away. I use it all the time, and I love the memories those plates and cups and saucers give to me.
Finally, I’m thankful for my publisher, and all the folks at the Avon and Harper Collins offices. They’ve helped me become a better writer, and have supported me in countless ways~the latest which is my little Christmas Novella, A Christmas for Katie. This fall, they took a little dream of mine and made it into a darling book. I’m thankful it got published, and I’m thankful to get to share it with others.
This Thanksgiving, I hope you have lots of turkey and stuffing, pie and green bean casserole! I hope you have stacks of dirty dishes and people around to help you wash them all. I hope you have pets barking and pretty much getting in the way, and relatives who talk too much and laugh too loud. I hope it’s everything wonderful…and the opposite of being alone.
Most of all, I hope you have time to give thanks for all the blessings in your life, whether they are very, very big, or so small you usually forget about them. I wish you my best and my thanks.
