Give Thanks

I've definitely neglected the blog this week while I've contributed to and read posts from the #givethanks challenge on Facebook. For the sake of preserving them in this record, and as a form of counting my blessings, I'm going to copy and paste the posts here.

Saturday: I love the movie White Christmas, it's one of my favorites. Just yesterday, while making dinner, I was belting out the words, "If you're worried and you can't sleep, just count your blessings instead of sheep, and you'll fall asleep counting your blessings." As I sit at my computer, overthinking what to write for a gratitude post, I find that my list of possible post ideas is overwhelming. So tonight I'm thankful for having too many blessings to count them. And for recognizing the gift that that is. #givethanks

Sunday: I love words. I love to write them, read them, speak them, sing them, and even listen to them. I love finding just the right word to express my thoughts. I love hearing them in the language I understand and in those I don't. I love how they can inspire me, make me laugh, bring out my deepest feelings, and draw me closer to those I love. Words are a gift and I'm so thankful for them. #givethanks

Monday: Tonight I am thankful for bedtime; very, very thankful. #givethanks

Tuesday: I'm nearly always cold and have been for as long as I can remember. When our AC died this summer and we were without it for the entire month of June, I finally warmed up in our 90 degree house while the rest of my family melted. I keep myself moving most of the time because it helps me be not quite as cold. All this is to say that I'm so very thankful for warm blankets, cozy socks, big comforters, and a husband that's always a furnace and is willing to hold my freezing cold hands. #givethanks

Wednesday: Someone made the mistake recently of asking me what I'm currently reading. After I finished rattling off my giant list they were mildly speechless. I was raised by bibliophiles, for which I will be forever thankful. We always had books, ready and waiting to be read, and we were unabashedly encouraged to dive right into the those books. Now I'm raising my own book lovers. They jump at the opportunity to go to the library. Birthdays and Christmas (and Easter and Valentine's Day and Halloween and sometimes random days in the summer or any other season) wouldn't be complete without a new book. Given the hectic nature of this season of my life, most of my recent book consumption is by way of audiobook, which I absolutely love. When I meet others that also love books I know I've found my people. I am so thankful for books. #givethanks

Thursday: Each November for the last six years we've had a Thanksgiving Tree. It's taken various forms, from butcher paper on the wall to a cloth tree I found in the dollar aisles at Target. Some years we write many things that we're thankful for on leaves and add them to the tree, some years it's a bit neglected and barren.

This has been a hard year for pretty much everyone, our family included. With stress and anxiety levels increasing throughout 2020, I felt prompted that we needed to increase our focus on gratitude as a family. So right at the beginning of the month I asked Bryan to draw a tree on a spare poster board we had and I ordered some leaf shaped gift tags from Amazon. Throughout the month we've added leaves to our tree.

I'm overwhelmed that during this hard, hard year we have more leaves on our tree than ever before. I'm not always able to see the blessings and the silver linings when I'm in the midst of the storm, but looking for the learning moments and the tender mercies helps heal my heart and mind. I'm thankful for the science and the practice of gratitude. #givethanks