Thanksgiving...

It’s almost Thanksgiving. It’s the time of year when the leaves have begun turning beautiful, vibrant colors, a nice little chill is in the air, and the aroma of pumpkin spice fills the house. My imagination of this time of year is much more relaxing and peaceful than the reality. In reality, I only have time to view the beautiful leaves from my screensaver at work, fill the chill only for a few seconds while I dash around doing errands, and the pumpkin spice aroma…well, that’s my glade candle.


The longer I live, the more I see people (me included) rushing around trying to get so many things done and never taking the time to just stop and enjoy what is around them. Have all our priorities changed? Instead of taking a nice walk and enjoying nature, we tend to hop in the car and go to a movie. Instead of enjoying a spectacular creation that was just given to us, we tend to gather in a small space and mentally escape for an hour and a half. For some, the joy and appreciation of Thanksgiving has been replaced by becoming obsessed with all the sales and ‘door busters’ the next day…changing Thanksgiving Day to just the day before Black Friday. I believe in a good sale and all, but I was so upset to hear all the stores that are opening the night of Thanksgiving just to hopefully prevent people from being trampled and mass chaos from occurring Friday morning. Seriously, people are willing to risk others safety just to get a good deal on a tv or even a toaster. I often wish that Black Friday would be banned.

I was speaking to the cashier at Randall’s, an older man, and he was telling me how they will be open on Thanksgiving. I was amazed. He said that since Mr. Randall no longer owned the chain, that so many things have been changed. I remember when Randall’s was closed on Sundays and when they didn’t sell alcohol no matter what day or time it was. I believe Mr. Randall has some good family values.

This Thanksgiving, I want a few changes. I’m not going to just rush through the whole day trying to get the ‘next thing’ done…there will always be a ‘next thing’ to do. The reality of finishing everything you “need” to do is nearly impossible. If it is possible, are you killing yourself to do it? Will you be enjoying yourself and be at peace? This holiday season, I’m not going to try and please everyone…there will always be someone who is not pleased with everything. I don’t plan on impressing anyone…is impressing someone a show of love for them or a prideful expectation of approval for yourself? I’m not going to try and “up” one on anyone else. We all have our own way to give…we all have our own budgets, we all have our time constraints. I’m not going to try and be perfect…if my potatoes are cold I need to realize that it’s okay and life can go on. I want this holiday season to be different. I want there to be peace…peace of mind. I want there to be joy…to enjoy the Christmas trees and the chill in the air. I want there to be more love…love and appreciation for family & friends, as well as yourself. I want there to be goodwill to all men…not trampling people for a few dollars off at a sale, but to truly feel joy that even strangers will be able to spend time with family and feel love and peace.

So, here are just a few things I’ve been thankful for this year:

Making it through the ups and downs of marriage
Spending more time with family & friends
Spending more time with my grandmother
My sister finding a person to spend the rest of her life with (+ 2 cats!)
Adding Charity, our cocker spaniel, to the family
Enjoying another year with Ty & Gweni (our Chow & German Shepherd)
Being able to celebrate the 1st birthday of Maddie (our friend’s baby)
My husband & I starting our own business
My husband managing the business plus a full time job
Having peace of mind of more things than I had last year
Amid all the lay offs, I still have my job
Scott & I getting on a better track financially
Scott & I becoming closer
Having more patience (still need much improvement, but still)
Finding ways to de-stress my life
Writing down my thoughts (this blog)

In closing, I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving! And, when you are about to scream because your gravy is lumpy and the potatoes are cold…just stop, laugh, and know that it’s okay. Go outside and take a deep breath and feel the cold chill of the season. Pick up a fall colored leaf and bring it inside…let it remind you to take a break every now and then and enjoy what God gave us. Instead of catching up on your e-mails, take a break and bake some pumpkin bread or make some hot chocolate. Stop and let the family know to get rid of the computer, cell phones, & video games for one meal to be enjoyed and remembered until next Thanksgiving.

PS-Instead of partaking in the mass chaos of Black Friday, check out a great online shopping source: Frou Frou Frilly on etsy.com ;-)