The Root of Joy…
“The root of joy is gratefulness…It is not joy that makes us grateful; it is gratitude that makes us joyful.” —Brother David Steindl-Rast
From focusing on being a good host and getting food on the table to distracting yourself from lonely moments on your own this Thanksgiving, there are many opportunities for each of us to forget to pause to acknowledge all we’re grateful for.
In thanksgiving for you, today’s newsletter is offered as inspiration for you to express your gratitude for the mundane (but oh so vital) things like streetlights, roads, and garbage pickup as well as the sublime blessings like giggles of a beloved grandchild, the purr of a cat, and a feast with loved ones.
Fullness of Life
“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.”
―Melody Beattie
A Prayer for Thanksgiving
O God, we thank you for this earth, our home; For the wide sky and the blessed sun, for the salt sea and the running water, for the everlasting hills and the never-resting winds, for trees and the common grass underfoot.
We thank you for our senses by which we hear the songs of birds, and see the splendor of the summer fields, and taste of the autumn fruits, and rejoice in the feel of the snow, and smell the breath of the spring.
Grant us a heart wide open to all this beauty and save our souls from being so blind that we pass unseeing when even the common thornbush is aflame with your glory. O God our creator, who lives and reigns for ever and ever.
—Walter Rauschenbusch
To Be Alive!
“We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures.”
―Thornton Wilder
For the Thanksgiving Feast
For the laughter of the children,
For my own life breath,
For the abundance of food on this table,
For the ones who prepared this sumptuous feast,
For the roof over our heads,
The clothes on our backs,
For our health,
And our wealth of blessings,
For this opportunity to celebrate with family and friends,
For the freedom to pray these words
Without fear,
In any language,
In any faith,
In this great country,
Whose landscape is as vast and beautiful as her inhabitants.
Thank You, God, for giving us all these. Amen.
—Rabbi Naomi Levy (Note: Both of the prayers for Thanksgiving came from a wonderful selection offered by ThePioneerWoman.com.)
