Thanks For All The Joy They're Bringin'

This is the last day of the Attitude of Gratitude Challenge. My blessings certainly exceed three per day, but I have to admit that the daily posting requirement for one entire month was kind of hard. I think the difficulty came mostly from the time required to compose each post. Thinking each day about so many wonderful things in my life was much easier - even on those hard-to-decide-what-to-write days. For my last thankfulness post, I am skipping to the next holiday I celebrate - because I am really thankful for that one.

I think these clips speak for themselves. And for myself, as well. The Christmas Season simply must be ushered in with song, as well as hot chocolate and mistletoe and twinkling lights, and everything else that wraps us up in the happiness of the holiday. I am not embarrassed to admit that I am musically stuck a generation back. In fact, I wear that badge it rather proudly. So, in this vein, and because each song invites inimitable recollections, I am thankful for:

1. Wham! - Last Christmas
   
   
   
2. Band Aid - Do They Know It's Christmas?
3. Sarah McLachlan - Song For A Winter's Night
   
4. And here's a bonus that might explain why my husband and kids frequently catch me humming and singing : Abba - Thank You For The Music

If I listen Carefully, Maybe I can Hear

I've been attending a Family History Sunday School class at church for the past several weeks.You want to know the reason I decided to take that class? I felt obligated. In our church, there is a lot of emphasis on genealogy. I've never even filled in a four-generation pedigree chart, so I figured I'd better learn how, or at least feign interest.

Over the years, I've observed family and friends climbing into family trees and pouring over hard-to-read records, sending letters to that far-away great-aunt who just may remember the name of a cousin's wife's grandfather's first wife and slamming books closed in the face of a seemingly impenetrable dead end. I've also witnessed eyes light up when an old death certificate appears out of nowhere, seen lips curve up as old letters revealing a complete courtship resulting in marriage are read, listened to laughter as "remember whens?" are exchanged, and felt the joy and thanks when a previously unknown family member or the missing link in an extended family line is discovered.

I thought adopting genealogy as a hobby was limited to the silver-haired set. And I assumed that those dedicated souls who were compelled to spend hours searching through old papers, traipsing through antiquated cemeteries and peering at microfische only pursued and rejoiced only in their own family lines.

My view is changing. Genealogy is not the prerogative of the the human subset aged 60 and older, and it's not limited to me finding people with my own last name. It's about more than simply tracing lines from Sarah to William and figuring out how Ellen fits in and how many children John had between his three wives. It's about family. Not just mine, either. It's about your family, too. It's about grabbing branches near and far and eagerly plucking whatever fruits are offered. Even though I can't say I've been bitten by the bug, I'm no longer pretending to be interested genealogy. If the bug does bite me, I don't plan on applying a healing salve in the hope that the bump will disappear.

1. I am thankful for my beliefs about the importance of family, which include the knowledge that family relationships don't end when death separates us from those we love. We believe that Heavenly Father's intention is for us (everyone - not just members of the LDS church) to literally be a family forever. As I sit here typing, my girls are bickering and driving me up the wall. I'm sure my blood pressure is rising and I can't wait until their bedtime. Even so, the comforting promise of an eternal family makes me happy!
   
2. I am thankful for the Family History class I've been going to and that it has piqued in me an enthusiasm about genealogy.
   
3. I am thankful that I have an opportunity to learn about - and perhaps even get to know - people in my family who have lived before me. If listen carefully, maybe I can even hear them whisper secrets that will help me find them.
   

On the 2nd Day of Gratitude.....

I'm cheating a little bit here. I'm setting my 2nd day of gratitude to music and it's actually November 3rd. Let's just say that after driving to doctor's appointments, making a quick pit stop at Hen House (yes, that is the actual name of a grocery store. Not quite as inventive as Piggly Wiggly, but obviously, that name was already taken....), rushing home to eat dinner within a 20-minute window, racing to meet Ryan and going to a birthday party, then returning home and getting the girls to bed, I didn't feel like sitting at the computer. But the reason why I'm not entirely cheating is that i shared my three things verbally last night. And I have witnesses! So, the three things for which I felt much gratitude yesterday were:

1. Cake. Sunshine Cake, to be exact
2. Ice-cream (cookie dough)
3. My friend Jennifer's birthday.
   

Attitude of Gratitude 2009

It's that time of year when simple gratitude is too often overwhelmed by turkey and pumpkin pie, first snowfalls and striped scarves, whispers and giggles, excitement and dread over the days of celebration of twirling our way. This is the perfect set-up for the Thanksgiving Challenge. The gist of the challenge is to each day list three things for which one is grateful throughout the month of November. And each entry should be original - for example, one can be thankful for chocolate for 30 days, but it can only be listed once. The friend who issued this challenge has forewarned of possible side effects:

Please note that challenge participation may result in any or all of the following:
- you will be surprised at all the Lord has done for you
- angels will attend
- you will feel help and comfort
- you may find yourself singing as the days go by
- your doubts will fly

So on this first day of November, I would like to share three things I am thankful for:

1. Jen's Attitude of Gratitude Challenge. To paraphrase one of my daughters, it will help me think what it is I need to remember to be grateful for.
2. The delicious smell of Fall - you know, when the autumn air is perfumed with a scent that is rich and crisp and golden?
3. Two tiny apple seeds deposited lovingly in a carved-out Halloween pumpkin. (So the pumpkin can grow into a tree that has apples!)