Thanksgiving Revisited

What To Give Thanks For

In our own cultures around the world, there are several ways to celebrate Thanksgiving. Each of these cultures have traditions of their own.

In the United States, Thanksgiving is celebrated to give thanks to Providence for bringing them to a New World not shackled to the traditions and customs of their originating countries.

Most notably was the freedom of religion. One religion or another was being forced upon the populations of these countries. If you did not agree with them, you could in fact be executed.

As I look back upon my reason to be thankful, I am reminded of all the successes I have had this year as well as my failures.

I look at the health of my family as well as my own. There is much to be thankful for. My health has improved from 4 years ago far more than was expected. I still have days when walking can be related to someone who is walking on thin ice. A fall can come without warning.

I am thankful for my wife for all she does for me. I try to help her with whatever she needs. There are times when it would have been easier for her to do it but I wanted to share part of her life, to ease her load a bit. That is only proper in my eyes. She has minor health issues that she tries to hide from me but I still see the struggles.

That is a phrase you often hear at Thanksgiving. While my family and I do enjoy the traditional feast at Thanksgiving, we try to keep the number of dishes limited and only for the number of people we are feeding. There are a few leftovers but not enough that we will be eating them for a week. If there are significant leftovers, we place them in containers for the freezer. This way we have a fully prepared meal for a time in the future.

I have had to watch my weight for the last 4 years because of my heart surgery and Guillain-Burre syndrome. I struggle with it daily and allow myself to indulge a bit more than I normally would. No longer having that second or third slice of pie or cake, no longer do I desire it. Oftentimes, I will not have anything sweet.

My focus has changed over the years. In the past, I was more focused on stuffing myself to the point of misery. I learned from my mistakes and that is no longer my focus.

There were times that I focused more on who prepared what, when would we eat, who would be there, would there be a family conflict, the list was long. I was never truly happy in those situations but went out of obligation to family.

Now that my wife is facing the end of her Mother's life, my focus is on my wife and finding a way to support her for that fateful day. My wife is a strong woman and can withstand most trials in life. She and her Mother have not been close for most of my wife's life, but it is still her Mother. I will be there to help carry her past some of the hurdles she will face.

We both put our faith in God above! We know that He will do most of the carrying and give the most comfort and support she will need. Giving him thanks and praise him for the life we are living. We may not have much in the way of material goods but we have more treasure in heaven than we would ever have here.

Having faced the loss of a child, both of my parents, 2 of her brothers and many other losses but we have faced them together. We are thankful for one another.

Many of the pictures in this post are from the turkey I smoked for Thanksgiving. My wife loved the way it turned out on a pellet grill I was gifted in September.

We have found that by God's grace are we allowed to have anything and for that I am THANKFUL.

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Jerry