With Thanksgiving coming so close to Christmas this year, there is a tendency to fast-forward into all the activities of the holidays without truly observing Thanksgiving. Yet giving thanks prepares us for a worthy celebration of the entire holiday season.
My grandmother Webb often encouraged her grandchildren to savor all the moments of our lives and not continually be looking to the future. She suggested that giving thanks for the current moments brings joy and hope for the future.
This year, I made my Thanksgiving list early and have read it often and gratefully. Since Christmas is also a time for being thankful, the list is still relevant, although Thanksgiving has passed.
• I am thankful that I have lived so long, allowing me to see amazing things happen in our world.
• I am thankful that I continue to be somewhat productive; I teach Sunday School, speak on various occasions and continue to write a weekly newspaper column.
• I am thankful for the many diverse and interesting people I’ve met on my life’s journey. They have enriched my life and stretched my understanding of the world.
• I am thankful for many wonderful friends in various age groups. From this group there is a small group of very close friends who know me well and like me anyway. How lonely life would be without good friends who encourage and challenge us.
• I’m thankful for a loving family in an age span from 1-year-old twins to senior adulthood.
• I’m thankful to be an American. There are some things happening in our country right now that I’m not happy about. The pulling away from moral values upon which the country was founded concerns me deeply. Deceit and divisiveness have created chasms in our structure. Yet if enough of us individually stand for what we believe made our country strong, we can right our ship of state. So let’s just do it.
• Most of all, I am grateful for a strong faith in the God of the universe, made evident through Jesus Christ. That faith has sustained and empowered me for many years and will lead me home.
Contact Nell Mohney at nellwmohney@comcast.net.