Full of Gratitude
With Thanksgiving this week in the US, we want to take some time to express our gratitude.
There are so many things to be thankful for that this post could be a very long one.
But we’ll keep it short.
The first thing we’re most thankful for is our family. It’s not easy being a parent (or sibling) and some days are tougher than others, but it’s so worth it. There’s no other place where we can learn to love another so much as in our own homes.
We’re also so thankful for our extended family. We were recently reminded of amazing family bonds at the funeral of one of my uncles. We may not see each other very often, but it’s so nice reconnecting with cousins and other family members.
Likewise we’re so grateful for the many friends and neighbors that have such a big impact in our lives. We’re continually inspired by great men, women, teenagers, and children we get to interact with on a regular basis. They make us want to be better every day.
We’re grateful for this beautiful world we live in. It’s easy to take the world around us for granted. We love being surrounded by the mountains. There’s always a wonderful view when the mountains are there to tower over us.
But that’s not all. There are so many places in the world we’d love to visit because there is beauty everywhere. Since we’ll only get to visit a small fraction of these places in our lifetime, we try to remember to deeply appreciate the beauty around us wherever we are.
On a related note, we’re thankful for the many freedoms we enjoy. There are things we get frustrated about and work to change, but overall we are free to choose and make our own path.
We’re also so thankful for the many opportunities we’ve had in our lives and that our children do and will have in theirs, including education, employment, and recreation.
We know not everyone in the world is so lucky. There are millions of people in the world who struggle for the necessities of life. Our hearts ache for them and we strive to serve and help how we can.
We love that Thanksgiving comes just before Christmas. Giving thanks for our blessings is the perfect way to prepare our hearts for the Christmas season.
A few years ago, our family spent our Christmas break in Mexico helping build homes for needy families. It’s an experience we’ll never forget and hopefully always appreciate.
This year we’re looking forward to joining in the Worldwide Day of Service on December 1.
We haven’t planned our specific service for that day yet, but we’ll do something to help others. And you can too.
As it says in the video, “Serve anyone you want any way you want”.
May you have a Happy Thanksgiving with those you love!
How about a bonus throwback photo to when we started our board game review site:
