The star of the American Thanksgiving table is the turkey. Asked to write a composition on “What I’m grateful for on thanksgiving,” little Timothy wrote, “I’m thankful that I’m not a turkey.” Benjamin Franklin nominated the turkey to be the national bird, instead of the eagle. Although denied this honor, the turkey has gone on to a more intimate relationship with the American people …as dinner.
Thanksgiving is a ritual to pause and acknowledge our blessings. A state of gratitude is known to create good feelings and health; it causes us to look away from what we ‘don’t have’ and toward ‘what we do have’. And… we have a lot more than we think! Having traveled in rural India and Peru, I am struck by the numbers of people who have very little. Some wash their dishes in the river and have earthen floors in their one-room homes… and yet, their eyes are bright and their faces smiling… their personal relationships warm.
This month I invite all of us to consider a state of continuous thankfulness. Regardless of what we lose, what we resist, what we want and don’t have, let’s intentionally refocus our attention on that for which we are grateful!
Thanksgiving Meditation
Taking a deep cleansing breath, I remember all that has given its life for me… the turkey on the table… the pumpkin in the pie … the flowers in the vase … I stretch my mind past my usual habits and agree to perceive these trimmings as “special gifts for me.” Hmm… feels good to receive… and I am grateful…
Gratitude naturally expands to the people with whom I share the planet… whether they sit at my table or elsewhere… I share my heart as a fellow human being… and I notice how good it feels to belong to something bigger…
I consciously choose to turn away from the narrow view and open to see the big picture of what ‘I have’… a grocer to offer fresh food without me having to grow it — the mailman to keep me connected without me having to travel — my friend to make me laugh for no reason except to have fun…
Thank you… to everything around me and
everything that is me…
Nice… the energy of appreciating… warmth around my heart… softness in my voice… love in my soul!
Wow!… so easy to elicit joy in my body by merely making a list of what I’m grateful and this ability is always near…
All I have to do is appreciate!
And so it is!
I’m grateful for you! Thanks for being my friend…
