Just a little inspiration.

Okay.  Tomorrow’s Thanksgiving.  You know that’s no good.  Getting into the spirit of the holiday usually means getting ready to wear stretchy pants to take in as much food as you physically can.  I don’t know how the tradition moved from celebrating the harvest and being thankful for the bounty to eating as much food as your stomach can hold and then having a nap.  But I don’t like it.  I don’t like that it’s the fodder for legions of jokes and is an expectation of the season.  That everyone just nudges the person next to them with an air of “oh, well, eh?”  Not to go all soap box on you, but I think the general allowance/expectation of gluttony found during the holiday season is one of the country’s biggest issues.  (off soap box now!)

This year, I’d really like to do a better job of being mindful.  Not just mindful of how much food I’m eating, but mindful of…well, everything else.  I want to be more conscious of all the things I’m truly thankful for; things that I take for granted pretty often.  Having my (general) health.  Having a roof over my head and someone with whom to share it.  Being able to afford not only the pets themselves, but the food they eat and the other accoutrements that comes with pet ownership.  My parents.  My siblings.  My new niece.  My job.

One of those things I take for granted is obviously food.  And not just during Thanksgiving and Christmas – year-round.  There are plenty more people who don’t have what I have, and would undoubtedly be way more thankful than I am to have it.  In a kind of turning-over-a-new-leaf-and-harvest-time-is-a-good-time-to-do-it way, I’d like to be more conscientious about what I’m eating and how that food affects me.  That’s a whole lotta dashes.  J

So, for this Thanksgiving, I’m going to really think about all the things in my life I’m grateful for, starting with the dinner plate, and working my way out from there.  As part of that spirit of gratefulness, I’m going to think about how fortunate I am to have the choice to overeat or celebrate the spirit of the season.  And I’m going to do everything I can to make the right choice.  It’s not going to be easy with Auntie K’s garlic mashed potatoes, but dang it – I’m going to try.

Happy Thanksgiving, oh best beloveds!  Let me know – what are YOU thankful for this year?