Giving thanks this autumn

Charleswood

I love October.

Some of my favourite things happen in October. Fall, for instance! I love fall. Or shall I call it autumn? Autumn is a much prettier word. Autumn has been quite lovely this year. Gorgeous weather. Late frost has given the trees extra time to burst into colour.

These cooler days now are the perfect excuse to put on a cozy sweater and jeans and go for a walk enjoying the golds, reds and purples of the season. Or to simmer soups and stews. Or bake pumpkin muffins. I love fall.

In October, I also get to recall the way yellow leaves fell like rain the day my daughter was born, and how the weather suddenly turned grey, cold and rainy the day after, as I settled in to life with that new precious soul. And every year, I get to celebrate her and the wonderful young woman she is.

October is also a time to give thanks. Each year, we get this reminder through our Thanksgiving holiday. Truly it is a holy day, if we consider the sacred gift of family and friendship and the source of every gift in our lives.

I believe with every fibre of my being that we are not alone in this world. And we are not accidents. We have been created by a great, wise, supreme, loving and personal God who exists outside time and space, who gave us a will that we might be able to love; language, intelligence and creativity to express it; and a spirit — the very breath of God — which gives us life and the ability for two-way communication with God.

Thanksgiving means there is someone to thank for all the goodness in our lives. The Psalmists had it right.

“…Apart from you I have no good thing.” (Psalm 16:2, NIV)

“Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! For He satisfies the longing soul, and fills the hungry soul with goodness.” (Psalm 107:8-9, NKJV)

This year I am giving thanks for many blessings: the provision of our new house in Charleswood and the strength and health to renovate it, the beauty of nature that we get to walk in all around us, a new job with meaningful work to help pay for all the renovations, all the people who enrich my life, the gift of music, and 100 years of my dad’s family living in Canada after losing everything during the Russian Revolution.

What are you thankful for? I’d love to hear from you. Happy October!