Living thanks...

This is Thanksgiving week, a favorite for many of us. Through the years I've noticed that our Thanksgiving tables are open to others more than at any other time of the year. For one day we give thanks by opening our tables to the stranger, to the one who has no where else to go, perhaps no family, perhaps no one in the world who loves them.

We know that the word for Thanksgiving is: "Give thanks." When I was growing up, Thanksgiving, Easter, and Christmas dinner were the only times a blessing was spoken before the meal. That was also the day we ate our meal in the dining room, so I suppose that was a reason to give thanks, too.

In my own life I have grown to understand that there is no other way to live that is more positive, more affirming, more practical and more loving than "living thanks."
Meister Eckart wrote: "If the only prayer you say in your life is thank you, that would suffice."

I want to learn to give thanks every day, every moment, every hour. I want to learn to give thanks for the difficult people in my life. I want to give thanks that I have eyes to see, ears to hear, a heart to love. I want to give thanks that I woke up in a warm house this morning, that I have health care, that my health is good. I want to give thanks for the gift this life of mine is.

Even when we compare ourselves to those who we see as less fortunate than ourselves, we are not in a thanksgiving place. Learn to give thanks by how you live, as well as in your attitude. Learn to give thanks by giving generously, in time, love, money, and every thing.

Have a living Thanksgiving!
meb