A month of gratitude....

Sunday, the guest chorister in our primary started our singing time by asking the kids what month it was. ("Wow, it's November!" I thought.) Then she asked what holiday we will celebrate in November. The littlest ones immediately shouted, "Christmas!" Logical, right? Halloween is over so the next big kid-fest is Christmas! They then tried "fall", "winter", "snow" and finally "turkey". (I think they are a little unclear on the concept of "holiday".) Eventually, they got to Thanksgiving.

Yes, Thanksgiving. As I thought about it, realizing it was in fact November and would be Thanksgiving in a few short weeks, I felt glad to have been reminded that it was a month for thanks-giving. Rather than only thinking about Thanksgiving in terms of what we are going to do for our "feast" and the often related stress, I felt excited to shift the focus to the spirit of the season...recognizing and expressing gratitude for our blessings. It reminded me of Amy's post about Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur and the sacredness of rituals and holidays which allow us to revisit the things which matter most in our lives.

So here at the little collection, that's what I am going to focus on for the next month...thanks-giving, abundance and gratitude. Wanna join me? While not all of my posts will be specifically about that (there are yummy recipes to share folks!)*, I am grateful to have the excuse to draw my attention to the abundance I enjoy, rather than areas where I think there is lack.


Can I share a quote with you I recently heard from President Thomas S. Monson on this topic?

“Both abundance and lack exist simultaneously in our lives, as parallel realities. It is always our conscious choice which secret garden we will tend . . . when we choose not to focus on what is missing from our lives but are grateful for the abundance that’s present—love, health, family, friends, work, the joys of nature, and personal pursuits that bring us pleasure—the wasteland of illusion falls away and we experience heaven on earth.” -- Sarah Ban Breathnach

Hoping for a little more heaven on earth for all of us. Have a blessed day.

*p.s. I am grateful for yummy recipes, I admit it.