Thursday, November 17, 2011

MORE THAN A DAY

One week from today is Thanksgiving Day.  One day is not enough for turning our thoughts toward the things that are right in our lives.  Most of us can list a dozen or more grievences, disappointments, and failed dreams, but for this week I suggest we consider those things that are right and good in our lives.

I'll begin by expressing gratitude for this country I call home.  It is a land of beauty, mountains, rivers, lakes, trees, vast fields, flowers, snowy mountain slopes, and rugged deserts. It's a land filled with rich natural resources.  It's a land that respects the past, but zooms ahead to embrace newness and innovation.
I love the rich mixture of ideas, beliefs, cultures, and faiths.

My extended family is large and diverse.  We represent an array of races and beliefs, but at the core we love and respect each other. We enjoy each other.

My husband, children and each of their small families rank right at the top of my gratitude list. How sad I would be if I had missed out on being a wife, a mother, and a grandmother.  I even like being a mother-in-law since I have four of the greatest sons-inlaw on earth and a lovely daughter-in-law who brings love and kindness wherever she goes.

I'm thankful for my house.  I watch House Hunters on TV sometimes and laugh at the things some people think are wonderful and scratch my head over some things some people find a drawback.

I'm thankful that I was raised a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and became a convert as I discovered its truths for myself.  I'm thankful for all the many opportunities I've been given to serve and give through the Church.

And I'm even thankful for all the mundane small things that go into making my life pleasant; things like my new car, telephones, computers, chocolate, a microwave oven, books (and the education that enabled me to read and develop a talent to write), modern plumbing, electricity, and the list could be quite endless.

And lest I forget to add them elsewhere, let me say I'm thankful for all of the teachers, editors, productin staff, and readers who have made me able to make the claim, "I'm the published author of more than twenty books!"

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