Fall has always been my favorite time of the year and I have often thought how ironic that is because it is a time when Mother Nature is preparing her world for a long winter sleep.  However, before she does that she blesses us with some of the most breathtaking colors one can imagine.  I gather she figured that if you are going to go out, you should do so in a blaze of glory.

Along with fall, comes Thanksgiving and since I live in Canada we will be celebrating ours on Monday and of course all of our US friends will celebrate theirs in November.  My thoughts naturally turn to family, friends and food as the day draws nearer and today my husband is picking up ‘Fred’ the turkey (there’s a long story about the name).  I need to get the frozen bird thawed out in time to go on the barbeque if it is not a fresh one, because I will never cook another turkey in an oven again (there’s another long story about that one). Note to self, do not try to self-clean an oven on Thanksgiving. 

As I plan the menu for our meal and gaze out the window at the leaves turning their brilliant red, orange and yellow colors I cannot help but think how Thanksgiving will be different this year at our house and for so many others. My thoughts turn once again to everything the world has been going through these last eighteen months. So many have lost so much, many things we once took for granted have changed and it is hard not to feel sad sometimes.

Instead, I am going to try and look on the bright side and remind myself that there are always little things in life to be thankful for and I encourage you all to do the same.

• I am thankful for the gift of love, the daughter we share and the life I had with my first husband who left us too soon
• I am thankful to have found love again with my second husband, who brings me joy and has embraced fatherhood
• I am thankful for the wonderful parents who raised me to believe that whatever I wanted to accomplish and whoever I wanted to be, I could
• I am thankful for my sister and the journey we have been on together
• I am thankful for my amazing friends
• I am thankful for the beautiful home life my husband and I have built together
• I am thankful for the wonderful labradoodle who came into our lives ten and a half years ago and the additional joy he brought into this house
• I am thankful for all of the people whom I don’t even know who have put their hearts and souls into helping to keep us healthy and safe these past months
• I am thankful for the people who have reached out to ask how my family is doing even when they may have been struggling
• I am thankful to see how neighbors have come together to help neighbors
• I am thankful to see how people have found such creative ways to help others who do not even live close to them
• I am thankful for the way so many people have said thank you for the kindnesses people have shown them
• I am thankful for the freedom I still enjoy because of the men and women who serve our countries

As your Thanksgiving approaches, I encourage you to take a moment to put aside your menus, the shopping list and what is happening around you to think about the things that you are thankful for.  We all need to remember to tell the ones we love, our friends and the key people in our lives how important they are to us.  A simple reach out, even if it is only through a phone call, will remain long after the turkey is gone and the last bite of pumpkin pie has been eaten. It will serve to add kindness to this year’s Thanksgiving celebration whichever way you might spend it and I think we can all agree the world could use a lot more kindness this year.

From all of us to all of you, have a happy, safe and thankful Thanksgiving.