Gratitude Nurtures the Soul
I let Thanksgiving go by without a post and mostly that is because we were busy enjoying the day and one another. I had my way of course: Matt and my father on the couch watching football, Oliver bouncing around the house, and myself alone in the kitchen. Altho I wasn't truly alone for there was a Fred Astaire – Ginger Rogers marathon on TCM and so I was very much in good company all day.
We really had a nice day. Oliver loves seeing Grandpa and he absolutely loves it when both of his parents are home. I think we all really live for the weekends when we get to be together. Matt will be staying home with Oliver on Tuesdays (beginning tomorrow) and I'm a bit jealous!
So I just wanted to share a few pix.
First, my dad
Next, the Bird (thank you Bird for feeding us)
The traditional polish (if you're not a meat lover, look away)
Bea's 4-Berry Pie (from Door County, WI) which is just so fabulous that if you haven't tried it, you surely must! It's truly thee best pie around hands down.
And the pretty dishes my mother passed on to me. I cherish them and love them so much because they remind me of her. I feel her near us when I use them.
OK, now I do have to share my gratitude practice with you. Each day, or nearly each day, I write a gratitude list of 12 (or more) things I'm grateful for. It's not an earth-shattering list normally. It often consists of the daily happenings, the little things that count and sometimes go unnoticed. I'll occasionally throw a deep thought in there, but not always, for if I felt I had to do that, these lists would not get written. Today I'll let you a bit closer into my world.
Today I'm grateful for:
“Can you see the holiness in those things you take for granted—a paved road or a washing machine? If you concentrate on finding what is good in every situation, you will discover that your life will suddenly be filled with gratitude, a feeling that nurtures the soul.”
— Rabbi Harold Kushner
How true that is. If you have anything to be grateful for, please feel free to share!
We really had a nice day. Oliver loves seeing Grandpa and he absolutely loves it when both of his parents are home. I think we all really live for the weekends when we get to be together. Matt will be staying home with Oliver on Tuesdays (beginning tomorrow) and I'm a bit jealous!
So I just wanted to share a few pix.
First, my dad
Next, the Bird (thank you Bird for feeding us)
The traditional polish (if you're not a meat lover, look away)
Bea's 4-Berry Pie (from Door County, WI) which is just so fabulous that if you haven't tried it, you surely must! It's truly thee best pie around hands down.
And the pretty dishes my mother passed on to me. I cherish them and love them so much because they remind me of her. I feel her near us when I use them.
OK, now I do have to share my gratitude practice with you. Each day, or nearly each day, I write a gratitude list of 12 (or more) things I'm grateful for. It's not an earth-shattering list normally. It often consists of the daily happenings, the little things that count and sometimes go unnoticed. I'll occasionally throw a deep thought in there, but not always, for if I felt I had to do that, these lists would not get written. Today I'll let you a bit closer into my world.
Today I'm grateful for:
- my little Oliver
- my husband and all he does for us
- for the coffee my husband brings me each morning
- for the hopes and dreams I have for our home
- for the fun hobbies that I have
- for the talent God gave me that is no longer buried in the ground
- for the Black Bean Soup I made yesterday. It tasted great and was so easy to make!
- for my father's health
- for the good relationship I have with him today
- for my health, just for today
- that I have a job and it's not a dreary nor dreaded one (even tho I often dream of staying home with Oliver)
- for new bookshelf in Oliver's room that Matt assembled
- that Oliver enthusiastically throws his arms up in the air says "Yay" when I say I'll get him some milk
- for God in my life which makes gratitude possible
“Can you see the holiness in those things you take for granted—a paved road or a washing machine? If you concentrate on finding what is good in every situation, you will discover that your life will suddenly be filled with gratitude, a feeling that nurtures the soul.”
— Rabbi Harold Kushner
How true that is. If you have anything to be grateful for, please feel free to share!