Thank Full

Thanksgiving is right around the corner. The fall colors are so beautiful and we even had our first frost. What a great time to stop and focus on what we’re grateful for- like pie 🥧 Who doesn’t love pie?! In my family, we typically eat a turkey feast in early afternoon and then have a pie smorgasbord for dinner. Don’t judge, pie is important 😆 and with pumpkin pie and apple pie at least we’re eating our fruits and vegetables. Sometimes there’s even strawberry rhubarb- both in one pie!

As I’ve been reflecting on gratitude I’ve also been made ruthlessly aware that life is always full of ups and downs. I strive to live fearlessly authentic. Therefore when people ask, “how are you?” I want to answer honestly and with vulnerability. Unfortunately life has held a lot of hard this last year and a half. So, how do we have a heart full of gratitude but also be truthful with ourselves and others about where we’re at?

This tension brings new meaning to the saying that the glass is half full. Brent and I have a new motto, “today is a gift.” We even have a pillow 😍 Having survived cancer brings a new poignancy to life. Getting to engage in living today is a reason to celebrate.

I recently spoke with a dear friend who is starting a church in a care facility. He is 87 and exudes joy. He was sharing with me that to create connection he told the folks about how he had to learn to talk again after a stroke. Multiple illnesses and surgeries resulted in a stroke that left him unable to get his words out. Eventually he learned to be able to express his thoughts and now is sharing hope with anyone who will listen. He wants everyone to know that they were born for a purpose and if they are still on this earth God still has a plan for them. I was so encouraged after our chat.

Brent and I also got to talk with his little sister the other day. At age 24 she was diagnosed with brain cancer. After we got the miracle of her going into remission, she changed career paths. She found joy in moving to Make a Wish Foundation and helping to grant wishes to very sick children. Together we reflected on how that hard time in her life led to her being used in really special ways. In both of these stories the gift that was/is today came in very hard wrapping.

I was so happy to come home from Hawaii to our garden and animals, but I also found more grief waiting. It appears that while fighting cancer, I put aside the grieving of those we lost during the process and the life changes it brought. I have a friend who reminds me that we can’t go around grief, unfortunately we have to go through it.

Remember the song from Sound of Music, My Favorite Things? “When the dog bites, when the bee stings, I simply remember my favorite things and then I don’t feel so bad.” Not a bad plan of action. In a chronic pain class I took years ago we were encouraged to write down our strategies that work when our pain is intense. The suggestion was to put them in a place you could find them easily and also share them with a friend who can remind you of what works.

What are your strategies for wellness? Discovering can be so helpful. I love how the author Brenne Brown says she dances with her kids in the kitchen after dinner. Mine include tea, time spent being silly with children (see photo 🤣), Bible study, journaling, petting animals, swimming, watching funny movies, being creative, calling a friend, listening to uplifting music, spending time outside, shopping at TJ Maxx, and baking. All of these things fill me up with gratitude for today.

I also like to prime my pump of thanksgiving when I’m feeling stuck in ungratefulness. (Like my new word? 😆) I think of 3 easy things I’m grateful for- i.e. my family, chocolate, popcorn and then the trickle becomes a steady stream and I can usually get to 10. Sometimes a fire hose is started and I can fill a page or more in my gratitude journal! But it just starts with three.

“Let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise…” Heb 13:15. When we stop and celebrate God’s gifts even if they came in hard wrapping, we are offering a sacrifice of praise. When we recognize the ways our glass is half full, even we it’s hard to get our focus off the half empty, we are also giving Him a sacrifice of praise. I’ve watched this act of obedience change my heart attitude.

As we celebrate Thanksgiving, know that if your glass is half empty it is also half full. Reflect on what fills you up and do more of it with the gift of time that is today. In being thank FULL may we find our hearts overflowing with joy on this up and down journey called life ❤️