A Day for Thanks . . . A Day for Reflection . . . A Day to Prepare for Tomorrow . . .

I'm standing at the end of my kitchen counter, writing this while I take a bit of a break, with the trappings of tonights meal all around me. The turkey is happily roasting in one roast pan, the ham in another. The cranberry sauce is cooling in a bowl, and the rolls are rising. Pies are stacked on a dessert tower and the rest of the meal is on the way to being prepared. This is the time of year I roll into full kitchen mode; the planning, preparation and enjoyment of the food, family gathered around the table together enjoying conversation and going a little too far with seconds . . . but it's also a time to remember why we are here in the first place.

So many years ago the pilgrims boarded ships and headed out on the treacherous journey across the Atlantic, fleeing from religious persecution and oppression, determined to worship God as they saw fit and braving the unknown to be able to do so. Since that time wars have been fought and won for this freedom, and we have enjoyed it for a very long time. But sit up, look around, pay attention to what is going on around you. If you're wearing blinders, take them off! If you've stuffed the cotton of ignorant bliss into your ears, remove it! The very freedoms so many have fought so valiantly for are being stripped from us one by one. We are no longer able to say Merry Christmas in the workplace without recrimination, we can no longer speak God's name without being repressed. Our children cannot pray in school without punishment, and don't even THINK about carrying your Bible with you into a government building! The environmental do-gooders spread the lies of global warming and in so doing repress the freedoms to live on our own land the way we see fit, our own government has grown to nightmare proportions and never forget for a second that no matter where you go or what you do, Big Brother is watching. It's only going to get worse if God fearing, freedom loving Americans don't get to their feet and say NO MORE! NO MORE will we take the foot of tyranny on our throats, for we have lived in the land of the free as a God-fearing nation for all of these years and we are taking our country back! It's coming, don't deny it for a second or you'll get caught in the chaos unprepared.

For today though, I will put aside my fears for our country, the loss of our freedoms, and I will thank God in heaven for my family, my friends, my home and my job. I will thank God for the food He provided for our table and my wonderful husband who is helping me to prepare it, and for the family who will be gathered around our table today to share it with us. I will appreciate the smells of the food cooking, the sound of laughter and conversation, and the sight of my dog so pathetically eyeing the counter, hoping something will fall into her path. This is the day that the Lord has made and I will rejoice and be glad in it!

Eat, drink and enjoy your freedoms today, for tomorrow we know not what may be knocking at the door of our lives. Pass the cranberries please . . .

I Am So Very Grateful . . .

I have an amazing husband. He makes me feel loved and cherished each and every day of my life. His face is the first thing I see every morning,and the last thing I see before I go to sleep, my heart filled with the joy of being his wife. I am so very grateful. Thank you God for R.

I have two amazing and wonderful children who are my pride and joy. They make me laugh, they make me cry, they sometimes make me very angry, but they are mine and they are wonderful, and I am so very grateful. Thank you God for K & G.

I know that my children are in love with people who make them happy, make them angry, make them laugh and sometimes make them cry. I love them as if they were my own, and they make me proud to know them, and for my children's happiness I am so very grateful. Thank you God for C & A.

I am blessed with parents who are still married to each other even over all the years of ups and downs, and that they love my brother and I more than life. I know that they would do anything for me, no matter what, and the feelings and love are returned equally. For my wonderful parents, I am very grateful. Thank you God for Mom and Dad.

I have a brother, and his family, who I am reconnecting with after years of not being close. He makes me laugh, he has made me cry, but for my brother, I am grateful. Thank you God for J and his family.

I am blessed with friends, dear, wonderful, friends. You know who you are when you read this and know that for you, I am so grateful. Thank you God for my friends.

In the current economy I am blessed that R and I both have jobs that keep the bills paid, food on the table and fuel in the cars. We are able to splurge on some fun items and day trips, and indulge ourselves with things some aren't able to do. My husband and I see eye to eye on things of political and spiritual natures and can discuss them without argument and with total absorption in our discussions. For this I am very grateful as it contributes to wonderful communication with each other. In a world filled with such sadness, anger, hatred and discord, I am living such a blessed life in so very many ways. Makes the little set-backs seem very small and insignificant.

I am so very grateful Lord for all the blessings you have bestowed upon my family and myself. If I haven't said it lately, Thank You. Thank You for loving me enough to provide such a blessed life, such a wonderful family, and such amazing friends. Thank You.

Thank You Veterans . . .You Are Appreciated and Loved . . .

Today is Veteran's Day, and though for many people it has come to mean just a day off from work, this is a day that should be taken seriously and spent showing our appreciation for every single veteran who has ever put on a uniform for our country. Because of these men and women we are free, because of them we can speak for ourselves, choose where and how to worship - or not, and live our lives however we see fit.

The toll on our veterans is so high, but many are unaware of just how high it is. If you have been blessed by personally knowing someone who has served in a foreign war, then perhaps you have been told stories of some of their experiences, but I'm betting you don't know the inside story, for these are the things they don't want you to know, but which show them for the truly brave and wonderful people that they are. You may not know how often they lie awake at night wracked with pain from injuries they have suffered during battle. You may not be aware of the horrifying nightmares that wake them when they finally DO fall to sleep. What about their reaction to sudden loud noises? Or the stress they undergo when they are in crowded or loud places? Have you ever thought about the toll that their experiences, and the post-traumatic issues from them, have on their families? When the war is over, or when their time in it is, their battles continue on for the rest of their lives. Life is never "normal" for them again. They may put on a happy face, some can't no matter how hard they try, but inside they have changed. Some changes are for the better, many are not, but there's nothing they can do about it.

Do you know what though? And this is so important to remember . . . No matter the horror they have gone through, no matter the damage done to their bodies and their minds, they would do it all again. Let that sink in. They would do it all again for YOUR right to live free, for the rights of even those who speak out against them, they would go back to serve this country they love so much, no matter the toll it takes on their lives.

Appreciate a Veteran this day, and every day. They have been there for us, let's be there for them.

To all the Veterans in my life - my father, brother, uncles, son, friends and extended "adopted" family . . . Thank you. Thank you for loving our country and our freedoms so much that you sacrificed for us. Thank you seems inadequate, but its all I have to give. Thank you.