This week, thanksgiving week, I’ve been thinking a lot about the state of our world, our country in particular. My hope for everyone in this country is that we will do what we have always done, what we are, in fact, known for. We will come together as a nation and look at the cards that we have been dealt and figure out what to do with them. Why not let this Thanksgiving be a true Thanks Giving? Something magical happens when we turn our thoughts towards being thankful. Suddenly things don’t look so bleak.
Yesterday during a class that I’m taking, the instructor opened with each of us saying what we are thankful for. I had a few minutes to think while others responded and what came to my mind was that I am thankful for my home. Yesterday and today I thought, “That’s a weird thing to be thankful for out of all the blessings I have”. But there you have it. That’s what I thought and what I said to the class. Later as I was thinking about it I wondered why I responded that way. After all I am very thankful for my family, my friends and my clients. I’m thankful that I have meaningful work that I love. I’m thankful that I have EVERYTHING I need and most of what I want. But what came out of my mouth was I’m thankful for my home.
My home isn’t grand. It isn’t large. It isn’t on a lake or beach. It’s not on an acreage. But it is mine and it provides shelter, refuge, and a sense of safety and community. There are so many people in the world and in our country who don’t have a safe place to lay their head down at night. Who will go to soup kitchens for their Thanksgiving meal, or maybe even do without. There is a lot of uncertainty in the world and in our country right now, but when I walk through my door and close it behind me, my world feels safe. It comforts me. I know that I’m fortunate. I know this isn’t the world a good many people live in. I am thankful for it.
What are you thankful for? Would you please, for now, put aside all the disharmony and disagreement that our country and our world are experiencing and think about your blessings? I would love to hear what you come up with.