Wednesday, November 26, 2014

Gratitude, Moment by Moment

At the Thanksgiving table I thank God for my family, my friends, my health and the thousand daily mercies that accompany my waking and sleeping.  Gratitude wells up like a hidden spring as I consider all I have been given.  Sometimes tears follow.

Like many of you I try to maintain an appreciative spirit every day in every situation.  That's easy to do when my granddaughter smiles at me or when I slice a tomato from my very own garden.  It's harder when I'm running late, the driver ahead of me on a two-lane road is traveling 20 miles per hour below the speed limit and I can't pass thanks to the double yellow line.  Or, more significantly, when I learn of a friend's illness or job loss.

Lately I've been giving thanks for people who travel on the periphery of my life and friendships that last for a season or only a moment:

The teachers, aides and office staff who greet me when I arrive for a substitute assignment and readily adopt me into their school family.

The lady in line with me at Hobby Lobby who points out a newly-opened check out line and encourages me to make a break for it.  As I place my greeting cards on the counter she smiles at me across the store, even as she continues to wait.

The couples Mr. Pettit and I meet through our travels, who share their life stories along with their dessert preferences as we gather for our nightly meal.

I think living in the moment enriches my life only when I use gratitude as my default mode, when I'm certain I'll find something to be thankful for in each moment, even if it's only the regularity of my own breathing.  

As I write this I thank God for waking me two hours before my alarm, giving me time to compose this column before I plunge into Thanksgiving Eve busyness.

Happy Thanksgiving, my friends!

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