"Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.”
1 Peter 4:8
Crisp autumn leaves more off the trees than on, sprinkle walkways with delightful crunch while those guilty of neglecting the middle-child Thanksgiving decorate so Christmas lights twinkle. By tradition, faith and good-ole obligation, families gather to eat, to sing and to give presents and the gift of their presence through the last several months of the year.
In perfect union with God who is Love, holidays become holy-days full of sacred serenity of selfless love. Unfortunately in the broken and fallen world as we wander east of Eden, discord breaks the harmonious unity and division accords. Families are messy because people are broken.
This year our Thanksgiving sounds like a British sitcom: Three Thanksgivings and a Funeral. The title hints at the drama of death both literal with the loss of a grandparent and metaphorical in the loss of my in-laws marriage solidified by them moving onto new relationships. Other off-beat sounds distributing your silent holy night in this special season: estrangement from a former loved one, loss of loved ones, disease that deprives the joy of normalcy, unstable living and/or financial situations, loneliness, misunderstanding of moral and /or political beliefs , among many other sorrows and sufferings.
How to get back in tune: choose a sweeter song to drone out the noisy chaos of others uncontrollable actions by belting out GRATITUDE and GRIT.
Gratitude: By focusing on the blessings the burdens feel lighter.
Grit: Through learning from the rough parts of relationships result in resolutions such as: I am determined to be a supportive wife, a strong and sympathetic mother; as well as one day a serene grandmother and a sincere mother-in-law.
Counting my blessings for 2023 to focus on my mind on the twinkle of the holidays rather crinkle of the endless dead withering leaves.
For my dear husband his provision and protection
For my oldest son full of intelligence and independence
For my younger son full of laughter and loudness
For my baby girl full of sweetness and serenity
For my sister and parents full of support and sympathy
For my in-laws who shaped my husband into the amazing man I love
For our good health this year for minor colds
For the children’s growth in faithfulness and kindness
For an easy pregnancy and delivery of our third child
For our cozy home with just enough space for our family of five
For our new 2023 Kia telluride that fits our family of five
For my God-given determination to grow and heal after giving birth
For my vocation as a mother and the means to stay at home to care for our children
For our local Catholic parish investing in our community with one another
For amazing relationships with other Catholic women
For good neighbors who play with my kids and one who even drives my eldest to preschool
For the gift and joy of writing that inspires me to create articles and children’s books
For the gift of exercising and fasting- growing pains
For the gift of once a month cleaners and Amazon items to beautify our home
For the playground and other neighborhood improvements as I learn and grow from the challenges on my HOA board
For God my Father’s embrace and Mother Mary’s gentle caresses
For Jesus, God’s son’s Friendship,
For the Holy Spirit’s guidance and transformation I experience in my Catholic faith sacraments
So May you also list out 23 gratitudes and increase grit as we grin not grimace through family meetings this Holiday season of greetings.
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