We all have our traditional Thanksgiving meal, and usually our regular thanksgiving prayer. We thank God for our family, for the food on our table, and pray for our family, which isn't with us. An attitude of gratitude is minimized to one meal.
I interviewed more members of our community about what was their favorite things. We often take for granted what we are indeed thankful for without thinking about what blesses we have in our lives or give it a second thought.
Usually, everyone had to pause for a minute or two. For some, it was longer. For some, it was a quick response, "Chocolate, my cats, beer and traveling. And Cross-fit."
"Food in general."
"Living, The covers it all!"
One gave it some thought and responded, "Good Gin with a good friend. Peace and quiet, that's why I love Big Sandy. Dive bar with pool tables."
"I love the mountains when there is snow on them. I grew up in the south, where snow was rare and special!" The beauty of the snow still thrills her.
"I love the gym at the school and that it is available. It's such a great opportunity. We live in a very small town, but we have something most don't have, and we don't have to pay for it."
"I love watching the kids at school help other kids at school. I love seeing empathy (inaction) understanding between people, especially the kids at school. "
It took him a while to think of something, and then he said, what was truly one of his favorite things, "the great wide-open spaces. Fishing, hunting, and watching the sunrise."
He agreed he felt free, blessed, grateful when he was out in the great wide-open space. "Depending on the day, I like to be by myself, but I like taking the family too.". He especially mentioned bow-hunting because "more game, fewer people, more quietness."
The two men laughed, "he'll say tow straps." It's muddy out after all.
I asked," what is your favorite food? "All of it. I like just about everything except lima beans!"
The other guy said something I thought was a pretty common response. He said, "Hang out with my family. Just sit there and watch TV-just hang out."
I asked the two of them what kind of gifts do they like to give. He said, "I like to give something homemade."
The other who liked just hanging out with his family said, "I like giving time. So many times, I forget how much time I'm away. I just got back from a deployment. I was in Qatar for seven months." All of a sudden, his answer had new meaning! Of course, he wants to just hang with his family. He has gone on six deployments, and with each deployment, he leaves more family. First, he wasn't married, then he left his wife, then he left his child, and then another. "I've lost three years of my son's life."
Being home and hanging out with family IS the most favorite and treasured thing.
She said her favorite thing is to "read, and spend time with the Grandkids every chance I get. I have about 200 books on my Kendal."
Another answered, what is your favorite activity. "I like to help others."
"My chickens. I love my chickens. I have 80 chickens and an Americana Rooster. He's a fluffy rooster."
"Sunflowers. They are so pretty, they smile at you, and they follow the sun." Now that it is winter, she puts sunflowers on her Facebook page.
They "love to sing!" It used to be a family tradition to sing at family gatherings.
Let me know if you decided to sing a song together to celebrate.
