What are YOU Thankful For?

Last year, I gifted my sibling with a beautiful handmade "Thankful Jar"... in it, were delicate hand-decorated slips of paper for each Thanksgiving dinner guest to write what they were most thankful for. No one used the jar. The beautiful jar was unceremoniously shoved beneath the buffet table by my sibling's partner who loudly exclaimed "I have nothing to be thankful for, so this was obviously a stupid choice for a gift".

Wait a minute... "a stupid choice for a gift"? Hmmm... perhaps the choice of partner...? Ah, but nevertheless... their union remains unbroken and...

I have since retrieved my Thankful Jar from my non-thankful recipients, thankyouverymuch.

What are YOU thankful for this year?

I am thankful for many things, though the two people for whom I am most thankful will not be here this year to celebrate with me - my parents, both of whom have now passed onto "the other side". This year, they will at last be together for every holiday, once again. It was six long years of solitude for my dear mother, who lived each day awaiting her reunion with her beloved. This year, I'm sure she is sitting at his side, watching us, with love.

I am thankful that I had the honor and pleasure of bringing my mom to live with my little family for her final years on Earth. I am thankful for her unwavering love and support, even when she didn't agree with me (which was 95% of the time). I am thankful that I was able to care for her, which is something that she had always regretted not being able to do for her own mother.

I am thankful for my husband, who always takes care of our family, our finances and our home, even when he's exhausted by life's demands. I am thankful for his unwavering love and support, despite the "beautiful mess we're in". :-)

I am thankful for our child, whose love, happiness and sunny disposition makes every day a beautiful day.

I am thankful for our health.

I am thankful for my sibling, without whose love and support, I would most likely be stranded on a dark sideroad somewhere.

I am thankful for his children, whom I have loved and will always love as my own.

And, I am thankful that I am here on this Earth to enjoy yet another beautiful, stress-ridden family holiday!

Enjoy!

And, please pass me the rest of that sweet potato casserole, already!

One Truly Historic Moment!

Tuesday, November 4, 2008 should be noted in future history books as The Day America Changed. Last night, tears were streaming down my face as I watched the joy on the faces of Americans everywhere. Not only was the first African-American man elected President by a country that has been known for its racism and division in the past, but Americans young and old, black and white, yellow and brown, gay and straight, rejoiced TOGETHER. The future is calling and it's screaming "CHANGE".

I am BLOWN AWAY by and PROUD of the overwhelming amount of joy and celebration that was evident last night, all across America. Americans - black, white, yellow and brown; gay, straight, undecided - all were standing shoulder-to-shoulder at Grant Park in Chicago, IL to listen to the acceptance speech of a lifetime from Barack Obama. Americans in Times Square were celebrating as if it was New Year's Eve...

We stayed up to watch the election results, as I'm sure many did, but continued to watch past midnight as the media showed the partying in the streets in Chicago, NY, DC, San Diego... it was simply amazing to watch ... more happiness and tears of joy than New Year's Eve. I saw Hope in the eyes of revelers; now that's something different... and it's wonderful to see this.

I am excited for our children's future now. Sure, I'm excited for our own future, too. But, since the birth of my own child, my decisions have been led by my desire to make the world a better place for my child.

And in a way, it WAS New Year's Eve last night. The Eve of a new generation of CHANGE.

Yes we CAN!