Over the river and through the woods...

I have very fond memories of Thanksgiving. It has always been one of my very favorite celebrations. And even as I write this, my parents, my brothers and their wives and children (one of whom is now married and will be bringing HIS wife!), and my sister and her husband and their children, and even some strangers to the family, are gathering to give thanks and enjoy each other’s company and good food. I’ve not celebrated Thanksgiving with them for many years, and I miss it. Growing up, the tradition was for me to get up very early with my Dad for the grinding of the cranberry relish, and he even brought it up when I spoke with him yesterday. They had a large metal grinder (maybe they still do!) with a hand-cranked augur that forced the food through disks with various sized holes. In this case, whole cranberries and oranges (and maybe something else, but I can’t remember). What a wonderful satisfying popping sound the cranberries made as they were ground up, and how wonderful the relish tasted later. Well, this is a day we set aside to think about being thankful. At the moment, the thing I am most thankful for is the power of forgiveness, not only the forgiveness God offers through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, but also power of forgiveness to heal and restore that is offered by lowly mortals (thank you, Teri). I am thankful that I do not have to live under a burden of guilt. I try to be thankful all the time. I have not gone as far as the suggestion in the daybook "Simple Abundance" to keep a daily gratitude journal -- but I do try to find something everyday to be thankful about and I do try to take nothing for granted...