Thinking of Thanks and Other Things

OK, so we just got through a poetry unit in school, but I really like alliterations anyway. This has been a very nice and calm Thanksgiving. Steve and I got up at 7:30 to start the process of draining the brine off the turkey and then stuffing it with fruits and veggies. We just stood there side by side for about four hours cooking and cleaning and it was very pleasant. That is my first thankful thought for the day. I am so very thankful for him, for his putting up with me and all my ideas and plans, but mostly for his loving me. I know he does and I hope he knows how much I love him.

Thankful thoughts also take me to children far away and those who have come home. Cari and Josh have been a home away from home for Chris since April and I love them for all the "space" they gave him. He seemed to really enjoy their company and friendship. What a wonderful couple who do so much good in this world. I am thankful that Chris is home again and a happy man. (There is a Beetle's song by that name that I always liked.) He is a man, and I am thankful for who he is and all that he will become. On the 15th he had a special day to share with our newest granddaughter, Caysley Ruth. (Michael and Tara's 2nd and I am ever so grateful to have them so close to us.) Right after stake conference Caysley was blessed and Chris was ordained an elder. Thankfully Jinny and Omar and the boys could be there for several days, including these important events.

So related thankfulness would have to include how thankful we all are that Omar is one of our family. Steve calls him for many purposes and can't seem to do certain jobs without him (like fixing the spa). Grandma Ruth misses him and all his tender care that he gave to her when they lived next door. She talks about missing them often. Jinny is a blessed lady for having three very special guys in her life. I'm thankful her much the same way that Steve is thankful for Omar, which makes me very thankful for cell phones and email. I'm also thankful for how much she loves her siblings and they love her (despite years of abuse when mom and dad were away and she was in charge).

So thankfulness extends beyond family to other needs being fulfilled, including a need to eat vegetables right out of the garden. The beans that struggled all summer long have proven to be extremely abundant and thankfully my grandkids came to the rescue and helped me pick enough for everyone to enjoy for dinner. They are such a joy to have around. Ava kept eating them right out of the bucket. Helaman and Isaiah weren't that excited about the eating part...only the picking part. Oh how I love to help things grow....

Which brings me to my new calling in the Young Women's Program. I am so thankful to work with some of my dearest friends Leticia and Robyn in helping the young women of our ward "grow" their own testimonies of the savior and His gospel. I am the 2nd counselor working with the Beehives and Greta is the President of the class. I love these girls. Many of them are with me at school every day, too. They are going to be a lot of fun to be with. Poor Greta can't get away from me, though. She is also the President of CJSF at school and I am the advisor with my friend/coworker Becky. Those are a great group of kids, as well, and I am thankful that Greta loves me enough to work with me and plan with me and have great ideas with me. If only she could learn to love to sew....I guess I have to be thankful that she shares my great love and appreciation for music instead. (With the hope that the sewing may still come...)

Speaking of music and getting back to the far away children that are coming home soon, I am so thankful that Bill made it back to our side of the world. We loved hearing about all his adventures in Australia and the Pacific Islands. Cruising for five months is apparently challenging as well as adventurous, but I am thankful to know that soon I will be able to get one of his big bear hugs that I so dearly love. Thankfully he called in time for us to save him some of the Thanksgiving pie that he loves from Grandma. (Which makes me thankful for a freezer that will keep it for him until he gets home.)

By now I'm sure Spencer is wondering if I am thankful for him. Good question. (Just kidding.) I love that boy. He's got a very loving way about him that is just good. Good in a sense of righteous desires and faithfulness to what he commits to doing. He may not vacuum right when I ask him to, but if he says he's going to do it during lunch, he does. I'm thankful that he helps me, or Steve, or Chris, or Greta, or Grandma when we need him. He is a caring and loving young man and I am so thankful for all the people who tell me how much they like him. It serves as a reminder of what a good person he really is.

The lesson in YW and YM was about gratitude today. The question that caused me to think the most was "How do you show gratitude?" If gratitude is a feeling of thankfulness and I want to show someone how thankful I am, what will I do? Will I give them a hug, sing their praises, write them a letter, tell them in person, face to face, or just hope they know by the way I serve them? I think the best answer is obviously all of the above depending on the circumstances, but the most important sense of gratitude or thankfulness I feel comes from the great blessings that have been given to me by a loving and attentive Heavenly Father, who knows me and my shortcomings and yet continues to be patient and kind and shower my life with tender mercies that are too numerous and sometimes too sacred to mention. I am thankful for Him and for His son that came to earth in the most humble of circumstances and yet made the most profound contribution the world will ever know-the atoning sacrifice. And what is my hope, my goal, my most fervent desire? That the life I live will show my gratitude.