Blessings in Disguise

It’s another beautiful Thanksgiving with my family. We are hosting at the farm and as I prepare a lovely feast for my family with my Mom and Grandmother at my side, I will be reflecting on all the blessings we have to be truly thankful for this year. And there have been many – love, prosperity, beauty, and moments of magic, but perhaps most especially I will be thinking of those blessings which came in disguise…

1.       I am thankful that my husband fell and ruptured a tendon in his knee which led to knee surgery which led to a hospital with a brilliant cardiologist who found a potentially fatal arrhythmia in my husband’s heart, acted and now my husband has been saved from the risk of heart damage or worse. I am so very thankful for that knee, that wonderfully fragile left knee, which saved my husband’s life.

2.       I am thankful for shin splints and sore leg muscles from running up and down the stairs because they remind me that my husband came home from the hospital safe and sound and that I am strong.

3.       I am thankful that I cannot find my measuring spoons or my favorite cups or that “thingy” I always use…because it reminds me that my Mother and my Grandmother are here helping me. They are two of the biggest blessings in a life filled with many blessings.

4.       I am thankful for work. I am thankful that I have a job that I love and that the work on the farm never ends because work can replace worry.

5.       I am thankful for the darkness because it gives us permission to rest.

6.       I am thankful for the rooster crows that start my days early because there is no place or time on earth that is more beautiful to me right now than dawn at the farm.

7.       I am thankful for the complaints my children have muttered when I’ve asked them to take on more chores because it let me know that while they were worried…they were not too worried.

8.       I am thankful for the raucous goofiness of the dogs because it has made me laugh when I might have cried.

9.       I am thankful that we could not go out and cut down our tree this year because my Dad was able to surprise us by bringing our tree on his truck on Thanksgiving Day (how incredibly lovely is that?).

10.   I am thankful for tears because they lead to hugs and kisses.