A Thankful Heart – 6

I am thankful for hospitals.

It seems that the older I get, the more time I spend in hospitals – either visiting someone there or giving someone a ride to the hospital for tests. Most of us assume that we will always have access to a hospital when we need it. Think you might be having a heart attack? Call 9-1-1, and they’ll get you there. If you appear to be having a stroke or seizure, someone else will be doing the calling, but you will still end up in the nearest hospital. No one really wants to go to the hospital emergency room, but I’m very thankful that hospitals are there when we need them.

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A Thankful Heart – 5

(photo credit: The Delaney sisters in “Having Our Say”)

I am thankful for those who have lived a long time on this earth, and are willing to share their wisdom with us younger folks.

This includes my parents, my grandparents, aunts and uncles, our seniors at church, and even people I read about. They pass on to us a wealth of information about the past and what life used to be like. They share wisdom about raising children, stretching dollars, being moral in an immoral world, dealing with bad situations, and handling grief. The world would be a much poorer place without those who have lived long lives. Thank you God for the elderly among us!

A Thankful Heart – 4

I am thankful for the color orange!

Maybe it was those orange flannel nightgowns that Mom made us girls one Christmas when we were kids. Maybe it was that orange room in the apartment above us that glowed as light shone through its windows. Maybe it was the glow of many beautiful sunsets.

Whatever started it, I love orange! The color feels happy to me. Thank you God, for the joy of being able to see orange.

A Thankful Heart – 3

I am thankful for sanity and a brain that functions normally. My memory certainly is not perfect, and I learn new things more slowly than when I was a kid. But basically, I am still blessed with all my cognitive abilities. If you can think, carry on an intelligent conversation, figure out how to solve problems, have meaningful relationships with the people around you, and handle both the good and bad in life, chances are that you also are in possession of a normal brain. Even if it’s not perfect, take time to thank your Creator for it!

A Thankful Heart – 2

I’m thankful for soap!

It’s something we use every day and it’s all over the house. We have it in the shower and by the bathroom sink. It’s in the kitchen, just waiting to scrub our hands with after cutting up raw meat for supper. It cleans off sticky faces, grubby arms and legs, and the outside of muddy children’s shoes. Dish detergent (a.k.a soap) gets the stuck-on food off our dishes, and laundry soap returns our clothing to something that looks and smells fresh again.

It’s just such a part of life that we don’t even think about it. But without soap, things would be filthy and stinky. We’d also probably be sick a lot more. The humble bar of soap may not be glamorous, but it’s something to be appreciated.

 

A Thankful Heart – 1

Today I’m thankful for time shared with my granddaughter. Yesterday we were driving down the street together, listening to the radio. A song came on that I really love – “Trust In You” by Laura Daigle – and I turned up the volume. Right about the time I started singing along, I could hear the sweet voice of the granddaughter singing with me.

“When You don’t move the mountains I’m needing You to move
When You don’t part the waters I wish I could walk through
When You don’t give the answers as I cry out to You
I will trust, I will trust, I will trust in You!”

It didn’t matter that she is in middle school and I am – well, old. Our hearts were in sync. The peace of Jesus was all over that car. In a world where very little is right or fair, Jesus can be totally trusted.

A Blessed Thanksgiving

I love Norman Rockwell pictures. The classic Rockwell Thanksgiving picture is the one with a large family gathered around a table with an abundance of food. But I prefer this alternate depiction of Thanksgiving Day. It is of a man and a woman peeling potatoes together. The man is obviously home from war, judging by his uniform. As the woman gazes at the man, you can see the gratitude in her eyes. The one she loves is home again, and that is more important to her than anything else.