Thanksgiving

It's been a while since the last time I posted anything, but I have been pretty busy with school, family, and trying to earn money to go backto Mexico, as well as running a girls bible study for my youth group girls. My thoughts now are, of course, focussed on this holiday of Thanksgiving. I love Thanksgiving. I mean, you get great food, family and friends. What could be better? But I do know that that is not the point of Thanksgiving. Most of us have heard enough about the origins of Thanksgiving to know thatit was started by the pilgrims in the US however many years ago. They stop teaching you that in school after about the third grade, so I don't recall all the details. There's a poem that someone showed my that truely sums up the real meaning of Thanksgiving, and it kind of makes you see things differently.

I am thankful for...
...the taxes I pay...
...because it means I'm employed.
...the clothes that fit a little too snug...
...because it means I have enough to eat.
...my shadow who watches me work...
...because it means I am out in the sunshine.
...a lawn that need mowing, windows that need cleaning...
...and gutters that need fixing...
...because it means I have a home.
...the spot I find at the far end of the parking lot...
...because it means I am capable of walking.
...my huge heating bill...
...because it meansI am warm.
...all the complaining I hear about our government...
...because it means we have freedom of speech.
...the lady behind me in church who sings off key...
...because it means that I can hear.
...the piles of laundry and ironing...
...because it means my loved ones are nearby.
...the alarm that goes off in the early morning hours...
...because it means I'm alive.
...weariness and aching muscles at the end of day...
...because it means I have been productive.

The art of thanksliving. It is gratitude in action. It is thanking God for the gift of life by living it triumphantly. It is thanking God for your talents and abilities by accepting them as obligations to be invested for the common good. It is thanking God for all that men and women have done for you by doing things for others. It is thanking God for beauty by helping to make the world more beautiful. It is thanking God for inspiration by trying to be an inspiration to others.

I don't know who wrote this, but it puts things in such a simple and clear way, that you just can't ignore the truth of it. It blows my mind, knowing how much I have to be thankful for. Sure, my life hasn't been easy, and I don't get to go out and buy whatever I want like my friends, but I have been blessed far beyond anything I deserve. My life could be a dream come true to many children in this world. This Thanksgiving, I am going to thank everyone I know, my friends and family, for just being a part of my life, because whether I like them or not, or whether I see it or not, they are a part of my life for a reason. And God doesn't start things that won't work out. I'm going to thank everyone who has made a difference in my life. It may take me a while, but I will. I have a lot of family to thank, and a group of friends too. But above all of them, the person I need to thank the most is God. And I shouldn't only give Him thanks on Thanksgiving. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving all!

Love always <3