Thanksgiving is a time when North Americans 
stop and thank God for their blessings. In our family, one of the prayers we say, at any time of the year, is: “Thanks to earth, thanks to the sun, and thanks to the rain for all you’ve done.” It’s an acknowledgement of the gifts we get from Nature, which is synonymous with my understanding of God. For me, when I stop to relish new growth, or the changing seasons, or the birds that stop outside my writing window, I am reminded of a greater power, of a force, of a mystery that keeps me in prayer and keeps me thankful for the life I have.
Every day, it seems, there are sad stories on TV. They remind us of the tenuous nature of life and also of man’s foolishness. In recent times, we’ve seen nature’s full fury in hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, and tsunamis, but how much of that have we brought upon ourselves through deforestation, coal mining, and irresponsible oil exploration and drilling? The debate rages on.
While man struggles for the answers to a better life, nature carries on below our radar for most of the time. We are so busy we don’t take time to see what’s in front of us. I was reminded of this when I watched, My Life As A Turkey. What a great show to see at American thanksgiving time. (We Canadians had ours a month ago). Watching biologist, John Hutto, take the time to raise a flock of wild turkeys and what he grew to understand about this wise bird was astounding. One lesson he took away from his time with these birds was: “So many of us live in the past or future, but betray the moment.”
Wishing all my American friends, a Happy Thanksgiving and wishing one and all, a life full of precious moments of joy and wonder.
Interesting. I do love watching wild turkeys. Gotta watch this! Thanksgiving is a fun holiday for us, mostly because of the food. My philosophy is to be grateful every day.
Sweet little turkey! 🙂 I’ve never seen a turkey in the wild, and didn’t see the program, but I certainly do agree that we can get so hung up fretting over the past and worrying about the future that we entirely miss the opportunities of today. I’m thankful for every moment I have, and especially for the micro-joys that too often are overlooked.
Thanks for visiting. The whole program is available if you click on the link above the video.