What are you thankful for today?
I bet yesterday you were either pulling your hair out trying to get all the last minute preparations done for this BIG DAY OF COOKING, or perhaps pulling your hair out with children out of school under foot, stressed by the barrage of PRE-BLACK FRIDAY SALES you just know you are missing out on or perhaps trying to site surf, select and enter your card number and push “purchase” between setting the table and some preparations and rocking a baby on the side and doing a load of dishes and laundry. You are looking around and thinking, “I must be insane, trying to be someone I am not, or just plain incompetent to try to “BE ALL THINGS TO EVERYONE IN MY LIFE!”
Yep! – You’re right! So why are you on this path in the first place? Sit down and read this now!
1. Ask yourself: What is really the most important thing here? The most important thing here is being with those you love in a calm, loving atmosphere.
2. Ask yourself: What do those I love want today? Have you ever asked those around your table this question? You might be surprised to know that they actually don’t care about salad, or the condiments, or even pumpkin pie! They might just love a turkey leg and mashed potatoes and a baked apple with hot chocolate and a giant marshmallow on top and you would have a loving fan for life…..
3. Ask yourself: Does my home have to be a beacon of perfection today or can it be: “Clean enough to be healthy and dirty enough to be happy?” I remember a time when I thought every single thing had to be in its place and no fingerprints on anything and not a dust bunny showing anywhere. Well guess what, that makes for an exhausted Mom, Dad and family and I stopped doing that! We do not live in museums – we live in homes. Children are messy and toys come with the territory.
4. Ask yourself: What is the most important message I want to teach my children, my family, my guests today and moving forward? This might sound just too simplistic – it isn’t! Too many people (me included at one point) thing it is about one thing and it is about something else entirely. The first and most important moment of the day is before your feet touch the floor and your eyes open. It is your attitude and heart and where they are about today and what it represents.
Do you see these beautiful candles above in this photo? Today, Thanksgiving Day represents 331 days which you have lived in 2014 and you have 34 days left in 2014. If I asked you to give me 1 thing your are grateful for, for each of those 331 would you be able to list them one by one without being flippant? If you knew you had only those 34 days left here with those precious faces around your Thanksgiving table today – how would you live differently? In our family we have a wonderful tradition of a little plate candle clip which clips to the dinner plate. I begin by lighting my candle and I say what I am grateful for and when I am done, I light the candle of the person on my right and they continue the grateful tradition. This lighting continues around our Thanksgiving table until all of our family, friends and guests have spoken and our candles are glowing at the table. This is our Thanksgiving Blessing Tradition and it is such a special one. (We often have guests from other countries who do not celebrate Thanksgiving and are of other faiths, and I strategically place those guests to my left, so that they have ample time to get the gist of what we are doing and by the time it is their turn and their candle is lit, they are smiling and have thought of something to be Thankful for.) After everyone’s candle is lit, we all say AMEN and blow out our candles.
What are you “BLESSED” with today?
Who are you “BLESSED” with today?
How can you be a “BLESSING” to someone today?
There are 34 days left in 2014 how will you make those 34 days count?