Always An Opportunity to be Thankful!

Good morning son!! How are you this beautiful morning? It's 9 a.m. here in Troy NY and 28 degrees this morning. The sun is out bright and dad has already made his Sunday morning run with Jamison to pick up the Sunday paper. I can hear dad in the kitchen getting the coffee ready. I love the smell of fresh coffee in the morning; especially Sunday morning. Although I don't have to rush off to work any more and sometimes I forget what day of the week it is, I always still enjoy Sunday mornings and having coffee and ready all the ads. I very seldom have the need to buy anything but I just never know what idea is going to pop into my head when I look through the ads from Joanne's, Michael's and A.C. Moore craft stores. Like I need more ideas to pop into MY head!

Dylan - ready for the oven!

The week before us is the week of Thanksgiving. It will again be a great week. Different, but great. The kids will be cooking a Thanksgiving dinner again this year, probably on Saturday when everyone is home. It really is a lot of fun; all of them in the kitchen making whatever dish they choose. You'd think the meal would be slanted in some way, all desserts or main dishes but somehow it all rounds out itself. They have to cook from start to finish. That means decide what they want to prepare, do the shopping, cooking and cleanup. It's always been yummy. Who knows, we could end up with that mean old rooster on the table!

Dad and I bought a small turkey and I'll make some cornbread dressing and grandma's famous Cranberry Crunch Jello Salad. We were buying groceries anyway may as well fix a turkey. (No, I know you want to, but don't go there! I don't know why I continue to give you glaring opportunities like that. It's not intentional, it just happens.)

Well, all this month people on Facebook have been sharing daily what they are thankful for.I have not joined the forces but continue to think about thankfulness and what it means to me and my life.  I continue to be amazed at the things in my life for which I am thankful or need to be thankful.  I do have to say that it disappoints me that there seems to be a rush to run past the being thankful part into the "I want", "I need", "my kids have to have", "my wife or husband can't do without" part of the season.  For me, and I can only speak for me, thankfulness needs to remain high on my priority list. Dad and I always tried to teach you that before anything else, being grateful and thankful should be on your list. Each and every day there is something to be thankful for in every one's life. Thankfulness comes in many forms and in many degrees. There's the thankful that, "Hey, I woke up again this morning!". There's the thankfulness of, "My child is safe at home" or "my loved one wasn't on that plane that crashed today". But, there are the thankful times when sometimes we forget we need to be thankful. Everyone knows when those happen. Maybe we say it quietly as we hug someone with tears streaming and saying a quiet, "thank you God". Sometimes we say those quiet thank yous because to show too much emotion would scare a child because that child didn't know they were in danger. But you knew. You knew what the outcome could have been and you are so thankful the outcome gave you the opportunity to be thankful.

As I have been thinking about opportunities to be thankful, this month especially, it has become very clear to me the opportunities are there in everything we do. I'm thankful I'm able to get out of bed every morning. Some people can't experience that luxury any longer. I'm thankful I can put my shoes on when I need or want to. I'm thankful I wake up every morning next to your dad who loves me beyond any words contained in the human language. And whether I like it or not, and I don't, I'm thankful that you are no longer in pain, such excruciating pain. I'm thankful God shared you with us here for 38 years. I'm thankful for family and friends on both sides of the United States and those in the middle. I'm thankful that God provides our needs and when we least expect it, our wants. I'm so thankful that as I have gotten older and progressed through life my wants have slowly diminished. I use to think it odd when I'd hear my grandparents say they really didn't need anything. I'd think to myself, how could you possible not need anything. I don't think it's the "need" that goes away, it's that as you get older you redefine what "need" is.

Thanksgiving has always been a huge part of our lives. Both being thankful and the actual annual celebration on Thanksgiving Day. We fix dozens of our favorite dishes. We overeat. We laugh. We tell stupid jokes. We play games. We share.

I am so very thankful for all the joy and laughter you brought into our lives!

Thanksgiving Day will probably never again be like it use to be. But then again, what day ever is. Happy Thanksgiving!

Until next week, be Aaron, love mom