We have come to the end of the month of thankfulness. Every first of November I grumble. I see the Facebook posts and think, "Here we go again." By the 27th the posts have faded to the background. Fewer people remembering to post, and most that do are stretching to find yet another thing to be thankful for. Isn't it sad? Isn't it sad people can't find 30 legitimate things to be thankful for? What's worse is that we need to have this month of thankfulness to begin with because the other 11 months out of the year we're being so selfish and self involved that we don't even think about being thankful.
Okay, so maybe there are some mass generalizations in there, but it has been on my mind lately. I don't do the month of thankfulness posts for a few reasons. I think the main reason is that I would probably forget. I would get going and miss day 9 then 14. Somewhere around 28 someone would remind me and I'd go, "Oops." Heck, look at this blog. I started with such gusto. Every Friday a new post. Then an additional one Sunday or Monday. Then it turned into just Friday. Now I hope to get a new piece written each week. In my defense of missing blog posts over the last two months, I claim an act of thankfulness. Life seems to be a whirlwind day by day. Work through training and tutoring has increased yet again, though it will die down at Christmas. And my family gave us an amazing Christmas gift, which in turn became a huge stressor in my life. I went through each decision, each action, each fret with the mindset to be thankful. Thankful for paid renovations. What an incredible gift. Honestly, I don't even mind the act of sweeping anymore because I'm sweeping beautiful floors. Sure, every time I tried to do something I forgot I couldn't enter a room, or get to what I wanted, but it was worth it. Two years in a row I have been overwhelmed by people. People I know. People I didn't. People I loved. People I didn't. The last two Novembers and Decembers have not been typical for me. Last year I was raising money to start the first Bugaboo & Ladybug Adventure. People donated and purchased items to help me reach the goals I needed. An entire payment plus some, was made by others. It was the most humbling experience. This year my family's gifts of painting and new floors floored me. It was one week of work that left me with a house that I thought would take another ten years to receive. Again, humbled. It made me think, to truly be thankful, it takes being humble. I've watched a friend post a thankful post each day. She, unlike most, has kept up with it. She has also chosen wonderful things to be thankful for. Some of the things we take for granted every day. I realized long ago that there are two ways to look at life - thankful or not. When we're thankful, we see the continual flow of grace and provision. Without thankful hearts, we are always searching for the next best thing. Nothing is ever good enough. I have had quite a few negative impacts on my life. While younger, I took an ungrateful attitude to it all. I never saw the silver lining. I never looked for the bright side. Somewhere in growing up, my mind saw things differently. I have a reason every day to be ungrateful for something. I have excuses and reasons to be miserable and unhappy. But what good does that do? All that is, is a selfish attitude. When I humble myself, and see the truth behind it all, I see each way God has blessed me. I see the good in people, in situations, in things I have no control over. I'm very thankful for the life I have been given. I'm thankful for the people in it, whether they're here for my growth, or theirs. I'm thankful for the relationships. I'm thankful for my home (even moreso now!) that protects me from storms, and gives warmth in the winter and coolness in the summer. I'm thankful that we can pay our bills, even if our jobs aren't always the most rewarding. People talk about bettering their lives, and there is always room for growth, but maybe sometimes we should just be thankful for the life we have and see what grows from it.
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May 2023
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