RUN TURKEY:8 Days til' Thanksgiving Dinner!

Get Out Your Life Jackets, Put On Your Humor, Count Your Blessings

It Thanksgiving

And Be Thankful YOU are not a Turkey!!!

Good morning readers, Good and wonderful morning world! It is always darkest right before dawn... and here I sit this morning, counting my many blessings; feeling thankful, coffee in hand admiring the darkness, and like a child eagerly awaiting the first light of morning!

This wonderful picture is a classy lady named "Rustee" now running in the Spirit Land with her little Grandson John Paul and others. Don't you just love the way she has that hand poised "just so" even with her life jacket on; brilliant smile as if ready to embrace yet another adventure? I find it a great picture this morning to remind all that it is time to dig out your life jackets, buckle your seat belts... the holidays are upon us once again!  Bless those turkeys necks... oops, I mean their hearts!!! For soon if they have any common sense at all, they will be taking to the hills of Asheville, and the Blue Ridge and other mountains hiding from the eager hunters trying with all their might to not end up on the tables of those who want them for Thanksgiving Dinner.  But of course they will be safe for those who are the poor hunters like my friend "Mike T." out in California  who is a Vegan/Vegetarian type... I loving refer to him with his Indian name of "Poor Hunter" hahaha. He will be having his traditional "toe-Verkee to be sure (yes, I know I have misspelled that). 

Thanksgiving... the day of wonderful aromas; there was a time folks would start the cooking a day in advance, gathering around kitchen tables to "catch up" with the news, gossip and "dish the dirt" along with making "green salad (which Angie will call again this year and tease me knowing she has it and I don't. The dirty and very much love little rat!, deviled eggs, stuffing, mashed potatoes (real ones), and all sorts of wonderful things. It would take days, hours, and the love that went into those dishes... oh my! What traditions to be sure.  And then someone would call us to the table.  I can remember the blessing way of holding hands and grace. My Granny's little house was like a circle (medicine wheel with openings that circled around the kitchen into the living room, the hall and back to the kitchen! Our big ole family would start holding hands and the family had to make that circle encompass the whole sometimes twice with everyone holding hands circling around... oh for sweet memories then, bitter-sweet now... And then in probably less than 15 minutes... food was devoured!!! What took days,hours, stories and sweat to prepare, GONE, just like that. And then the kids were out the door to play; the adults settled in for football; the tryptophan in the the turkey soon took effect and snoring could be heard, ah but another successful Thanksgiving to be sure... The memories, the blessings, the minutes and hours and years of gratitude...

Can you think about your times like that? Can you dig a little deeper this morning for a blessing of your gratitude for the day. One thing to hold you and help you while you move through this day? I hope so, I pray you peace. Maybe you should just write in on the palm of your hand! That way you just have to glance at it, knowing it is but a heartbeat away... Your very own life raft, to choose to use so to speak.

Put on your life jacket, stay afloat, choose to be present my friends... Every Day Is A Gift even in times of great heartache, pain, struggle and challenge, loss and grief.  Think for just a moment, "What would your loved want YOU to be thinking/doing/being/feeling as these holidays approach? You may find that helps you put that life jacket on! The seas of the holidays, added to the dark months, added to feelings of being down, depression, heartache and not wanting to feel better.... YOU NEED THE LIFE JACKET, we all need the life jacket. Holidays are stressful and wonderful at the same time... Trust me, I would not lead you down the wrong path here!

I was honored to speak to a group last night at The Compassionate Friends Group. They are men and women there for support, meeting and sharing the pain of loss secondary to losing a child /grandchild to death. Many with heavy heart, some healing and settling in as they have learned to live "differently" while honoring the memory and incorporating the death of their child into the rich tapestry of their lives. We talked about the "approaching holidays" and most as usual dread it. Some are not ready to move from their pained places, they are growing comfortable in the pain, the misery, the missing. The Annual World-Wide Candle Lighting of Compassion Friends will be held in December, I will be there, I wouldn't miss it. My message last night was "Visions of Hope through the Heartaches, and The Holidays". I think it touched their hearts, I pray that it did. I challenged this group to start each day; starting today by writing one thing on a piece of paper. Just one thing each day. ONE BLESSING THAT THEY HAVE, ONE BLESSING THAT THEY HAVE, THAT THEY HAVE RECEIVED, ONE INTENTION FOR THE DAY... and to read it, to use it, to think about what their child would want for them, would ask from them.

They all said that they would; we laughed at times, we cried at times, our hearts connected in a sacred way.

Again last night I learned much from the experts along the journey, I loved much as one who spoke to their pain and heartache, I danced to the rhythm of life while guiding their grief and facilitated a ritual for healing.

Run Turkey's, only 8 days until Thanksgiving...

I received a beautiful letter this week from a woman who had a child that lived but for 6 hours many years ago. His name was John Paul. She holds him in thought daily while living a blessed and abundent life. Her letter began with words that now are fitting to end today's blog, and are quite fitting for the group I met with last evening.

Here comes the light of morning through the Spanish Moss! Have a blessed and thankful day...

"I believe that when the student is ready the teacher appears..." (Sally Lindberg)

Walk In Beauty,

http://healingheartaches.com/