The Spirit of Thankfulness Continues

I'm baaaaack! After eight days of coping with a stupid, stupid cold during the busiest month of the year, I'm back on track with much to catch up on in the way of thankfulness leading up to Christmas. From the trivial to the meaningful, here we go:

Source: MSNBC.com

• I am thankful for over-the-counter cold medicine. It might not provide a cure, but at least it helps get some relief and the sleep you need until you can feel better. (And I'm thankful to finally be feeling better.)
• I am thankful for the sleep timer on my TV. 
• I am thankful for my two cats who think it's their job to keep me warm while I sleep. Or maybe they think it's my job to keep them warm. Whichever it is, it works...although sometimes too well.
• I am thankful for the countless hours that others put into preparing for Christmas programs so the rest of us can enjoy them..
• I am thankful for coworkers who make my job such a joy.
• I am thankful for friends and family who mean more and more with each passing year.
• I am thankful that my sister and nephews will be here to spend Christmas with our family.
• I am thankful my family decided to draw names this year so we can spend more time focusing on our time together.
• I am thankful for my niece and her family who moved back home this year. It's wonderful to see her do such a great job of being a mom.
• I am thankful for our first Christmas with my grandniece, who at 9-1/2 months should be a lot of fun to watch Christmas day. Heck, she's a lot of fun to watch any day.
• I am thankful for this time of year when we stop to remember the greatest gift of all, the gift of a Savior.

I don't say it often enough, but I am thankful for each one of you. You encourage me, you challenge me, and you enrich my life. Thanks for being a part of Single and Sane.

Until next time,
Margaret

I thank my God every time I remember you.  In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. ~ Philippians 1:3-6 (NIV)

Spirit of Thanksgiving, Post #4 - Elizabeth's Shining Light

Now I know why smart bloggers did the sensible thing and wrote their posts about gratitude leading up to Thanksgiving instead of after the turkey was history. It's not that it's hard to continue the attitude of Thanksgiving throughout the Christmas season, it's just that December is a ridiculously crazy month. So while I'm only on post #4, rest assured that I'm not facing a shortage of things for which to be grateful.

Today, as her family says their final goodbye - inasmuch as any of us can ever say a final goodbye to someone we love - I am thankful for the life of Elizabeth Edwards. Like many who never met her, I still felt as though I knew her, and I found her inspiring. What can be said about this woman that hasn't been said? She was articulate, she was passionate about the people and the things she believed in, she was determined, she was a force of nature, she was a devoted mother, and clearly from what we have heard from her friends, she was also a devoted friend. But all of that has been said.

Source: Google Images

I admired all of those things about her, but most of all, I admired how she lived out her faith in a public way, not by shouting about her beliefs, but by quietly showing us what is is to live as a follower of Christ when your world is crumbling around you.

Spirit of Thanksgiving, Post #3 (The Smallest Tree)

As I strive to continue the Spirit of Thanksgiving throughout the holiday season, today I am thankful for small Christmas trees. This is also my shameless attempt to win an itty bitty candy cane, courtesy of Lea at My Letters to Emily. Her contest was inspired by A Haven for Vee's 3-foot tree, which I believe totally defies its small stature.

It's not all about my competitive nature though. I really am thankful for small trees, since they grace my home with a festive spirit during the Christmas seasons that I choose not to put up a tree, or when time gets away from me before that deed can be accomplished.

There are the trees I made for my mantel. The picture is not great, because I cropped it from last year's pictures, but you get the idea. These trees are still in the closet, waiting to grace my living room, once again...

I think the lopsidedness is part of their charm. ;-)  The ceramic tree (just to the left of the tree on the far right) rotates as it plays Angels We Have Heard on High.

There is the whimsical tree that sits on my coffee table. Again, an unfortunate cropping job from last year...

There is the retro pink tinsel tree that I love for the fun bit of kitsch that it brings to my life each December...

And then there is the tiniest tree, the only one that is actually out so far...

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There is a bit of an optical illusion in the picture below - it's about 4-3/4" high, but it looks even shorter next to the yardstick, thanks to the angle...

Someday, it will go to my grandniece (along with the dollhouse I originally purchased it for) when she is old enough for such an itsy bitsy treasure. For now, it's my tiniest tree.

Until next time,
Margaret

Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity. ~ I Timothy 4:12

Spirit of Thanksgiving, Day 2

Today, as I continue my Thanksgiving posts leading up to Christmas, I am thankful for the long Thanksgiving weekend, which began on Wednesday. The extra time off provided me the time to do things I rarely have the opportunity to do around the house - things like pulling the sofas out to vacuum underneath. It provided me time to visit with family not only on Thanksgiving, but on Friday, as well. It provided me 3 out of 5 days when I did not have to set my alarm. 

 

 

It provided me time to visit stores and go online to search for the gift my brother, sister, and I will give to our mother for Christmas. It provided me with a quiet Sunday afternoon to stop by the office and prepare for the upcoming week, which is always a particularly hectic one, as it follows such a short work week. It provided the time to organize the project I actually began for my niece 35 years ago, and hope to finish for her daughter before Christmas. 

 

Yes, you read that last sentence correctly. ;-)

Until next time,

Margaret

Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. ~ I Thessalonians 5:16-18

The Spirit of Thanksgiving

All week, I intended to write a Thanksgiving post based on a post written by Matt at The Church of No People last Monday. It's taken until Saturday, but I'm finally getting around to it.

In his post, Matt talked about how we spend Thursday focused on being thankful for all we have, only to hit the stores at the crack of long before dawn on Friday because we want more. People are only too anxious to leave Thanksgiving in the dust as they camp out in parking lots waiting for Black Friday sales to begin. The irony is that as Thanksgiving ends and we turn our attention towards Christmas, we celebrate the gift of Christ by becoming so consumer-minded that, too often, we lose our gratitude for the greatest gift ever.

Source: Background Fairy

My comment on Matt's post was about how so many bloggers had used the first 25 days in November to write daily posts about things that fill them with gratitude. Those posts were all wonderful to read, and humbling as they reminded me of so many things I have for which to be grateful. I suggested that to keep that spirit of gratitude through the Christmas season, maybe the posts should begin with Thanksgiving and lead up to Christmas.

So that's what I plan to do for the next few weeks. I'm not promising a daily post, because keeping a tight blogging schedule is not one of my gifts. But we'll see.

Today I am grateful for the time spent with family on Thanksgiving. Thursday was spent with cousins we only see once or twice a year. Their grandmother and my grandmother were twin sisters, and growing up, our families often spent Thanksgiving together. As the twins got older and each lost their husbands, the custom fell by the wayside. My cousins recently decided to revive the tradition, and I'm grateful for that. Of the twins' children, only my mother and one son on their side of the family (and his wife) are left. It's wonderful to see them together on Thanksgiving, as they were on so many other Thanksgivings, long before the rest of us came along.

What about you? What were you grateful for this Thanksgiving? How do you maintain that spirit of gratitude through the holidays?

Until next time,
Margaret

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations. ~ Psalm 100:4-5