Here we are, on the eve of a wonderful celebration. A day to stop and just say, Thank You. What a gift this day is, in and of itself!

In recent years it’s struck me that being thankful is very “on trend.” It’s kind of popular. But somehow, somewhere in its rise to fame, Thankful has become synonymous with Positive Thoughts.

That’s not what it means, I tell my children.

Thankfulness inherently is an acknowledgement of two parties: you, the recipient, and another, the giver. And being thankful without acknowledging the giver is rather like mailing a thank you card with no address.

Thankfulness is a chance to remember who we are and where we stand. It’s an invitation to embrace humility. And joy.

So I ponder this. Tomorrow, I want to respond to that invitation. I don’t want to simply look around me, take note of the good things I enjoy, and proceed to feel good. I want to treat thanksgiving as what it is: a chance to humbly say, All I am, all I have, the very breath I breathe, is a gift. A gift from a Giver.

Now thank we all our God
With heart and hands and voices,
Who wondrous things has done,
In whom the world rejoices.
Who from our mothers’ arms
Has blessed us on our way
With countless gifts of love
And still is ours today.

*****

Moments of blessing far beyond what I deserve (what joy and freedom!):