Giving Thanks

This Thanksgiving Day, 2014, is nearly gone but I wanted to take a few minutes to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving and to write some of my thoughts.

In my half asleep/half awake state the other morning my mind focused on Thanksgiving, and then it focused on some of the things and people and events for which I'm thankful.  It wandered both broad and deep, racing through past centuries then back to the present.

I'm thankful for the Mayflower travelers and the Pilgrims who celebrated the first Thanksgiving.  As far as I know I'm not a descendant of a Mayflower Pilgrim but nonetheless I'm thankful for their endurance through the hardships they faced and their willingness to leave all things known and travel into the unknown.  Without them, I might not be here. 

And then I thought of the early Patriots and soldiers, the signers of the Declaration of Independence, the men and women who fought so bravely to create a free country.  I'm thankful for their courage to stand and fight, and sometimes die, for their beliefs.  Of course I'm grateful for all our service men and women who sacrifice and have sacrificed to preserve our nation's freedoms.

To my mind came Johannes Gutenberg, his printing press, books, the printed word in books, the virtually printed word, libraries, bookstores, and the ability to read and write.  How grateful for those blessings I am!

I'm grateful to my Savior, Jesus Christ, for living, for being an example, for being strong enough and committed enough to die so that we could have eternal life.

And what would I do without my ancestors?!  I wouldn't be here, of course.  I'm thankful to them for weathering the lean and difficult years, grateful to those who were strong and forward-thinking and to those who may have struggled to be strong.

I'm grateful to have living relatives.  My siblings and their spouses have become friends, as have my adult daughters.  All bring joy to my life.  I'm also grateful for friends both near and far.

I'm thankful to be alive on this wondrous and beautiful earth and to have lived through difficult times as well as easy times.  The easy times give me the strength to face the challenges; facing the challenges makes the other times easier.  And both give me a richer perspective and more understanding, patience, and desire to be grateful.

The list could go on for a very long time . . . .

I hope you, dear readers, have had a Happy Thanksgiving, rich with blessings, memories, and gratitude.

--Nancy.

Copyright © 2014 Nancy Messier. All Rights Reserved.