“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.
Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.”
When my wife and I purchased our New Jersey home back in 2002, we looked forward to hosting many memorable holiday celebrations – one being Thanksgiving.
We both love the fall season – the sights, sounds and foods you only seem to dine on one day out of the entire year! We enjoy preparing the menu and the details, cooking together days before and creating a warm and inviting atmosphere for guests to share on this day of gratitude.
Celebrating Thanksgiving at our home became a wonderful tradition for over a decade. But sadly it’s been two years since we last celebrated this holiday in our very own home.
When we moved to Colorado, our housing purchase simply didn’t coincide with hosting a Thanksgiving crowd. But this year the tradition begins again, as we celebrate our very first Thanksgiving in our new house (which we’ve called home now a year to the day).
While the location is different the same plates, glasses and silverware will be front and center; the same linens and candles will adorn the table; some time honored recipes will be present, as well as a few new ones; there will be some familiar faces, some new ones and sadly some will be missing.
And while we’re excited to be hosting Thanksgiving once again, the reality is that no matter where we celebrate the day we are thankful for the people who will join us for the blessings we’ve been afforded.
So no matter where your Thanksgiving celebration may take place, show your gratitude for the blessings before you – that you’re not alone, hungry, suffering or homeless.
Catherine Pulsifer once said, “If you made a list of all the things you could be thankful for, the list would undoubtedly be longer than your misfortunes.”
