November 2007 ~ Thanks Giving

“The best things in life are nearest: Breath in your nostrils, light in your eyes, flowers at your feet, duties at your hand, the path of right just before you. Then do not grasp at the stars, but do life's plain, common work as it comes, certain that daily duties and daily bread are the sweetest things in life.” Robert Louis Stevenson

Once again, November has rolled around and when I think November, I think thanksgiving… not just the holiday, but the act itself… the act of giving thanks. Actually, thanksgiving is first of all an attitude… an attitude of gratitude, we like to say… an attitude of being… being grateful… for what? For the things that are nearest, according to Robert Louis Stevenson… for daily stuff like breath and bread. Giving thanks for our blessings is a good thing to do in any season. But, maybe there is another level to thanksgiving.

When we retired from church ministry three years ago, some dear friends gave us a beautiful wooden plaque that now hangs in our kitchen. The plaque says this:

“In everything give thanks!”

Notice, it does not tell us to give thanks for everything, but to give thanks in everything. This same message is carried in Paul’s first letter to the church at Thessalonica. In chapter 5:16 - 18, we find these words: “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

These words always leap out at me: “…give thanks in all circumstances.” Thinking about them today, I am reminded of the fires that destroyed so much of southern California just a few weeks ago and of the people who lost their houses and everything in them. So many who were interviewed on television during that time spoke of giving thanks to God that they and their families were alive and determined to rebuild, to start over. What an example of “giving thanks in all circumstances.”

But what about those circumstances where there does not seem to be anything for which to thank God? What then? Perhaps this is when we thank God for being God, for being our Source of hope and blessing in everything. In Unity we practice “seeing the Good in everything.” I think this is a helpful way to practice “being thankful in everything.”

Paul had something to say about this, as well. In Romans 8:28 he says, “We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” And in verses 31 and 37, we find: “What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us? No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.” And so we can say, thank you God!

jbm

October 2007 ~ Harvest

As I was thinking about what to jot about this month, I kept getting the word “harvest.” This led me to remembering a man by the name of Zalman Schachter-Shalomi. I met the good rabbi through his book “From Age-ing to Sage-ing” several years ago when I was invited to offer a workshop on “eldering.” I connect him with the word “harvest” because of the particular way he uses the word in his book.

He says, “By harvesting, I mean gathering in the fruits of a lifetime’s experience and enjoying them … When we harvest, we consciously recognize and celebrate the contributions we have made in our career and family life. We also appreciate the friendships we have nurtured … Harvesting can be experienced from within as quiet self-appreciation or from without through the honor, respect, and recognition received from others …”

Working with this concept personally has made me aware that “harvesting the past” is not just for people who are “really old!” Everyone has a past, be it long or short, and looking at the past with regret seems to come naturally to us sooner, rather than later. Dealing with the past is the livelihood of therapists and counselors and the work of any of us who seek to live in the present.

Some of us may have grown up in a culture that frowned on “self appreciation,” calling it “pride” or even “sin.” However, sound psychology teaches us to acknowledge our pluses as well as our minuses. Often we are reminded to “see the good” in those things we regret. This is another way to understand “harvesting.” Seeing the good in those things we are happy about is also important in our overall mental/emotional/spiritual health. Again, we remember that Jesus taught a way of loving others that is based on loving ourselves.

Harvesting a lifetime may seem like a large task to those of us who have accumulated a significant length of “lifetime.” But, like everything else, it’s one day at a time! Taking a few minutes at the end of each day to identify three things that we are grateful for is a good way to begin.

jbm