Thanksgiving 2012

I've said it before, and I will say it again.....Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. It is all the good stuff of Christmas - food, family, time off work - without the stress of giving gifts. Plus, Thanksgiving usually has good football to boot, while Christmas has movies or basketball....I guess I would prefer some good college football. Okay, so what have I learned since Thanksgiving 2011. A couple of things have made an impression of late related to gratitude. First, this past Sunday at church we were challenged to identify 100 things we are thankful for. So on the drive to my parents for Thanksgiving dinner, Amy and I led a conversation with the children about 100 things we are thankful for as a family. It was an interesting list. I would have to say about 60% - 70% were about people, health, and experiences. Of course, the remainder were things - houses, jobs, toys, cars, etc. What struck me though was that our children listed family, neighbors, and teachers first. That made my heart smile because we live in a society that is about things. And I know my children love their things because I hear about their Christmas present wants all the time. But when we sat down and talked as a family, it was the people and relationships that bubbled up first. I think there is a lesson in that for all of us. The second lesson I had was similar to the first, but slightly different. I was able to attend church on Thanksgiving morning by myself. (G was sick, Amy was with her, and E protested because he wanted to watch the Macy's parade....he won.) There was the traditional Thanksgiving music, a time of where the audience was able to share things they were thankful for (try that with 1500 people sometime - exhausting), and a message. Within the message was a thought, 'What would you do if you woke up in the morning withOUT things that you forgot to express thanks for the night before?' Well that obviously makes one think about their attitude, and gratitude for the amazing blessings we have. The people in our lives, health, spouse and children, neighors, friends (heck all relationships), jobs (even when they are stressful or frustrating), toys, games, cars, house, healthcare options, newspapers (I love newspapers!), religious freedoms, country we live in, etc. The list is longer than 100. I continue to live in a space that has its frustrations related to many things. But at the end of the day, I have a lot more things to be thankful for than one can imagine. And I choose to remember and focus on that versus the frustrations.