Giving Thanks

I am trying to develop the habit of looking at life from a positive side. It usually isn't too hard for me as my life seems to be full of many good things. But I sometimes get a bit mired in the underside of things. We have a lovely view from our house on a hill. We are surrounded, from horizon to horizon, with sky. It is easy to see the cycle of the heavens from here. We see the storms move in; the stars at night are bright and distinct; a full moon lights up our little hill and floods our bedroom with a soft radiance. The hills surround our spot. They are a lovely mix of brown and green at the moment. In summary, our view of the world is beautiful. That is, it is beautiful when one looks beyond our own immediate yard. The area around our home is mostly clay soil with a few stubborn weeds that don't mind the harsh conditions of wind and clay. If I concentrate on that view it leads me in a darker direction. I am prone to complain of no lovely growing things and a rather depressing vision. Both views are a reality. But concentrating on the distant beauty surely does make me a lot happier. Besides, having no fussy plants to speak of makes playing in those places a worry-free experience. So I suppose I am trying to say that there are really two universes; one is filled with beauty and one is not. Why not choose the beauty?

This Thanksgiving was our year for family. Christmas will find our kids with the other side of the family. So everyone gathered at our house for Thanksgiving this past week, except for Gerald and his family in Taiwan. That makes 16 grandchildren all under one roof. Most of them stayed for two nights in addition to our holiday. It was a wild and crazy time. Anticipating all of those babes makes for some important preparation and quite a bit of clean-up after the party is over. But the joy of having everyone outweighs all the negatives. Jessica and her family came from Seattle; that was a treat. Of course with all those life forms running about at once there isn't much opportunity for individual bonding. But there is magic is watching the family interact. My mind feasts on that.

Mom told me that she has lately been thanking the Lord for her stroke. "Why?", I asked. She said that it has brought her family closer to her and so it is worth it to her. I suppose it is possible to be grateful for the struggles in life. I'm working on that idea. I gave a talk in Sacrament meeting today on gratitude. It reminds me that a daily counting of blessings puts me in a universe of optimism. We can pick our universe. I like being in a positive place.

Pictures: top is our Thanksgiving buffet with Ben's Jessica the most prominent disher. middle is part of our gang relaxing in the living room. Bottom picture is of our Jessica's hub Chris flying his model in the back yard with grandsons Isaiah and James watching.