Monday, October 8, 2012

I am Thankful

   It is Thanksgiving Day here in Canada, a day for celebration and reflection. Like many of my fellow Canadians, I cannot help but think of the blessings of friends and family,  shelter and provisions, health and happiness. Still, today, I think I would like to be a bit more specific in my thanks.

  I am thankful for quiet mornings and active days, sitting in front of a fire on a crisp night under a starry sky, dinners on the deck in the summer,  a decaf cappuccino or latte with a friend. 
  I am thankful for the feel of a good book in my hands and the time to read it, an afternoon in my favourite green chair in the world of that book,  a classic movie that brings me to tears or makes me laugh.
   I am thankful for music that leaves an ache within me, lyrics that speak truth,  stories that never grow old,  art in all its forms that adds colour and hope and encouragement to life.
   I am thankful for the sound of birds in my backyard, the howl of a wolf, the purring of a cat.
   I am thankful for the pressure of my dog Tara's head on my feet while I sleep.
   I am thankful for hot summer days, gentle rains, the way the world looks after a new-fallen snow. I am thankful for Kent's garden and its changing appearance through the seasons.
   I am thankful for a crisp white wine,  a gluten free fondue, something hot and comforting on a cold day.
    I am thankful for time spent just with my grown up girls, and for the opportunity of getting to know and love their chosen partners in life.
    I am thankful for time spent with Kent, my husband and chosen partner in life, enjoying the little things that come our way.

   And most of all, I am thankful for the never-changing mercy and love of God and His Truth, and the way it has forever changed my life.

Happy Thanksgiving Day, Canada! May today be a reminder to us to be thankful all year long.








Friday, October 5, 2012

Frost

   The ground has been covered in frost the last two mornings here in Edmonton and I am reminded that our short summer and even shorter autumn is almost at an end. I have lived here now for more than thirty years in total, 26 in a row last count, but I still have not gotten used to the fact that winter is quite selfish here, hoarding as much of spring and autumn as it can get away with,  leaving those seasons to fight it out with summer as  best they can. 
     I remember long autumns growing up in Montreal, sweater weather for several months, it seemed, until the snows took over. Sometimes there is no autumn here to speak of; we run from summer straight into winter, leaves blown or frozen off the trees before we even have time to consider their passing. This year, at least, we have enjoyed a beautiful September and I try to remember that, as I watch the quickly passing season. Autumn may not end until December on the calendar, but it says goodbye to Alberta long before that. 
     In spite of the frost, I am trying very hard right now to enjoy each of these days that still allow me to tramp around in shoes and a light coat, with the leaves still turning colour on the trees and the grass still green. One morning, perhaps sooner than later, I will wake up not to frost but to a blanket of new fallen snow.  I confess, I do not look forward to that....