Random Thoughts of Thanksgiving

For those of you that will read this, Thanksgiving is filled with more food than we can eat, comfy sofas to lounge on after we eat too much and family and friends surround us most of the day. Today, though my thoughts are on the things I am most thankful for (keep reading for this), I also keep thinking about those people in our society that don't have Thanksgiving to look forward to nor do they feel they have a list of things to be thankful for. This bothers me. I think of the homeless that will stand in line with strangers, hoping to get a warm meal before the turkey runs out. I think about the poverty stricken single-parent households in which many mothers will choose to use the majority of their month's food stamps to put a complete Thanksgiving meal on the table for her children. I think about the children growing up in our area's homeless shelters that have questions for their parents on why they live in a shelter and not in an apartment or house like the other kids at school. I think about a select group of my clients that do not have family in the area and will spend Thanksgiving home alone as their depression sinks to depths in which it no longer seems manageable. All of these thoughts went in and out of my head today as I watched my own family make multiple "to-go" plates because there was so much food leftover. I don't bring up these thoughts to bring you down. I only want to acknowledge my thoughts in regards to the less fortunate because they are human...just like us. I know that it's not my job or yours to "fix" our society or bring happiness to all. But I do think as God's children we should have hearts that are empathetic towards the less fortunate. I pray for this group of people, they have feelings and circumstances that most of us will never have to experience.

On a happier note, I am thankful for so many things. I am learning to feel God's presence each day and today I know he is present because he continues to provide for me and has blessed me in so many ways. I am thankful for:

• my healthy, happy little boy who brings joy to my life each and every day
• my hard-working husband that travels each week to provide our family with opportunities
• growing up in a family in which all I ever knew and felt was love and got to wake up every day knowing that my parents loved me and were going to do whatever it took to take care of me and my sister
• my sister who is my bestest friend, who listens and always takes my side :)
• that I have a job that I absolutely love and a chance to build a private practice
• Connor having a nana and pawpaw who adore him and show him unconditional love each and every time they spend time with him
• that I have friends who "get me," listen without judging, and are always dependable
• Chloe...who keeps me and Connor company and stands guard each week
• my stepson who seems to have made a turn for the better
• that I serve a God that is faithful, loving, and always there

That is just a few of the things that I am thankful for each day. I often have some of my clients keep "gratitude" journals to remind them of the positive things in their lives each day....doesn't seem like such a bad idea for all of us!