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On Being Grateful…

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It’s glorious outside.

It’s actually the perfect fall day.

It’s wonderfully sunny, the sky is blue with whisks of clouds mixed in, and the temperature is as crisp as it should be for a Saturday on our Canadian Thanksgiving weekend.

People seem happy and vibrant as I run a few errands before hunkering down and prepping for our feasts this weekend.

This morning, as I planned out my weekend, I started thinking about being grateful. We have had a tumultuous ride around the world this year with strife, upheaval and political discourse.  I have felt, especially in the past few months, feelings of uncertainty among friends and family about where this crazy world of ours is heading.

But, no matter what our circumstances, there is always something to embrace and cherish – even if we encounter trials and challenges.  Each day there are things that we can choose to be grateful for and find joy in…we just need to see it, accept it and appreciate it for what it is.

I’m reposting my thanksgiving post from a few years back because it speaks to how I feel each Thanksgiving.

Through trials and tribulations, we can all find love and gratitude if we chose to.

Peace and blessings to all of you this Thanksgiving!

S:)

On Being Grateful... Just Crumbs Blog by Suzie Durigon

Autumn is awesome.

Say that three times fast!

There is so much “incredible” when it comes to fall:

– you can wear your favourite big sweater and leather boots again.

– you can put away your bikini for a while (hallelujah!).

– you can stoke a fire in your fireplace and get that beautiful smokey, fall smell throughout your house.

– you can pour yourself a big glass of red wine and sit by said fire and reminisce about all the people you are going to invite over to sit by said fire and enjoy stories.

– you can be grateful for all of these things because it’s Thanksgiving.

 

When we think about Thanksgiving, many of us have visuals of Pilgrims and Plymouth Rock.

Although that’s the visual for our neighbours to the south, the origins of Canadian Thanksgiving can be traced back to the 17th century and French settlers.

The one thing, however, that Canadians and Americans can agree on is that, although we always remember the historical relevance of this holiday, the more common thread is that both countries share a gratefulness for the harvest of the past year…that’s what thanksgiving is about!

So, this weekend, remember the farmers who spend endless hours on a farm with hopes that their prayers will be answered and there will be plenty of sunshine and rainfall to reap a wonderful harvest.

And, because I dream of being a farmer (mostly in my head), these are some things I am grateful for:

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For my garden that is always patient with my lack of knowledge but always encouraging when I “try, try again”…like these carrots pulled from the ground on a beautiful sunny day in October.  From a scattering of seeds come the most fragrant, versatile vegetable.

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For our diverse weather in Canada that allows us to grow so many things like tomatoes and peppers and gives us both warm days to work in the sunshine and cooler days to bring relief to those that work outdoors for many, many hours each day.

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For the ability to start fresh every year.  Like a clean slate, we get to dig everything out, contemplate our mistakes, celebrate our successes and plan for the next harvest with better information on our failures and a renewed faith in ourselves as self-sufficient creatures.

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For perseverance that is so evident in a garden.  If we, in our daily lives, had the ability to push through tough times and come out smelling sweet, life would be a whole lot easier.  Like this strawberry plant that never gave up and gave me a lone strawberry (in mid October) let’s be more forgiving of circumstances around us that may push us to throw in the towel.  If we persevere, we too can bloom.

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For encouragement that all is not lost.  After my mamma bunny gave birth in my garden to 5 of the cutest babies, she ate many of my climbing beans.  I was okay with that because these beans I grow for the beauty of their red flowers and for the dried beans they give me for soup.  But, almost on the same day I forgave the bunnies, I found a bunch of stray beans in the middle of my green beans that gave me the most beautiful blue beans to use in soups all winter long.  And the beautiful red-flowered beans that the bunnies ate?  Well, they  too persevered and grew again…too late to give me beans to harvest, but enough to shower me with beautiful red blooms.  Forgiveness and a positive outlook brings grace…I am sure of that.

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For small surprises that teach you the earth always gives back if we treat it well.  Almost a month after I harvested onions, I dug up the bed where they were planted and found 15 small onions deep in the earth…God’s way of saying, “you did good…here you go”.

There is so much to be grateful for…

Be grateful for bills because that means we have a roof over our heads.

Be grateful for dirty dishes because that means we have the means to fill those dishes with the food we eat.

Be grateful for the unmade bed because that means we have a warm, safe place to lay our heads at night.

And, most of all,  be grateful for the lack of time and busyness of life because that means that we have people in our lives that love us enough to include us in everything they do.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you, my friends.  May you find peace in your gratitude too!