With Our Bellies Full

This year has left me feeling more full of gratitude than any past year. We have a beautiful new home with indoor plumbing and insulation (we moved from a primitive-ish yurt). Grandma and Grandpa, brother, uncles and aunts, cousins and old friends all live within an hour's drive now from us, we have friendly and helpful neighbors, our son is vibrant and totally rad. We have a freezer full of meat and berries. A storeroom full of winter squash, potatoes and apples. Creativity is flowing in our household. Love is here.

I'm very aware of the not-so-pretty historical side of Thanksgiving, it's true origins, but really, for me the essence of gratitude and abundance are what excite me about this precious time spent with family and sharing rich food. In the quiet of the morning while food is not yet attended to, there is a shift that occurs, causing this day to be less than mundane for me. Not typical. There is a childish anticipation for the cars to pull into the driveway with family and friends carrying armloads of food and drink to share.  The knock on the door, greetings and hugs, smiles, stepping thru the threshold of the door into a warm and inviting kitchen and smells of rosemary and wood smoke. 

This simple shift from normal day to holiday is profound for me. After being tied to the daily rituals of work, the garden, my child, and housekeeping, these celebratory days allow me to shift my energy and focus on what's before me. It's easy to say that focusing on gratitude for the day of Thanksgiving is cliche, but really, we live close to the seasons and with these seasons carry a spirit, an essence.. allowing for personal growth and reflection. This is what I love about this time of year, that it's heavily laden with space for reflection, space to slow down and gather, space to say "thank you".

And we are full to the brim….