Giving Thanks

Yes, Thanksgiving was once again hosted at our home, and another turkey was sacrificed to the gods of tradition. *Sigh*

My parents came to visit and the four of us (the RandBalls and the Olsons) sat around, visited with each other, and--most of all-- ate.

Thanksgiving is such an important holiday in this day and age. We so often forget to express our gratitude. We take things for granted. We expect that life will happen the way we plan. It's difficult to come to grips with the fact that everything in our lives is mutable, and nothing is to be taken for granted.

I know it's rather morbid, but I often think about what I would do without RandBall, or what would happen if I got into a terrible accident and couldn't notify him myself. I think of all types of scenarios, partly in order to prepare myself, and to a degree, I feel my subconscious is constantly reminding me not to take my blessings for granted. My mother is the same way. When I leave for a trip by plane, my mother always sends me off with the same phrase, "Don't get dead." In her mind, voicing this ensures that nothing bad will happen because the likelihood that you would predict something so terrible is so minuscule, that she feels in some superstitious way, she's preventing the very fate she hints at. From my perspective, this could become a psychosomatic fulfillment of prophesies- and my superstitious tendencies compel me to knock on wood. So, I often don't voice my thoughts. I do so here only to illustrate the point- that we seldom take the time to be grateful.

Why does our society use Thanksgiving Day to focus on food and prosperity? I know how the story goes; that the pilgrims celebrated the harvest and their partnership with the American Indians to bring forth such bounty. However, in a society filled with such abundance, why is the focus on food? Why don't we instinctively look to the others around the table, and take a moment to share our gratitude with one another; for live, for happiness, for the struggles that taught us valuable lessons, and most of all, for each other?

So I suppose I'll lead by example:

This Thanksgiving, I'm thankful for my new husband, my lovable pug, my home and work and education. I'm thankful for my family, for my parents, and for my relationships with family and friends. I'm thankful for the learning and growth that these relationships have brought me, even though many of them were complicated by family dynamics, situational drama, and emotional pain. I'm thankful for my growing self-awareness, and for the person I have become. I have been making new friends-- something that evokes a very childlike excitement in me--and I've encountered and fostered relationships with some very strong mentors and role models. This is a time leading up to a great career transition in my life, and for all of those who helped me through it, I am eternally grateful.

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