Thursday, November 19, 2009

Thankful Hearts


hey y'all,

with the holidays all-too-quickly approaching, i figured i needed another thing to do. actually, i was thinking, as i have been the past several years, of how to slooooow doooooown and do less each year.

i don't mean to sound like a grinch or grump or grouch or scrooge, but honestly, the holidays have become just a little too much to handle the older i get. quite frankly, there's so much emotional baggage all tied up with the holidays that it makes me want to run away and hide in a cave until groundhog's day.

by then i feel it's safe to stick my nose out. and if there's a shadow, well, then, whatever. i never can remember the groundhog rule.

but lordy, i've digressed. the thing is, since i can't feasibly run away, i've decided to get back to the basics. for thanksgiving, that means putting honest-to-goodness thought into what i'm thankful for ... and giving thanks for those things.

i've yet to buy a pumpkin. but am i stressing over it? no. okay, i'm trying not to stress too much. whoever shows up at my house on tday, i will be thankful for them and will serve a wonderfully juicy turkey and the best damn cornbread dressing (my mama's recipe) in the south. oh, and we'll have mashed potatoes and green beans and corn and croissants and plenty of apple and pumpkin pie.

i'll also be thankful for those who aren't able to sit at my table. and will miss them.

but back to my original comment: something extra to do this year. in this final week before thanksgiving, i want to share with you each day a different thing (or person) (in no particular order!), for which i am thankful. i hope you'll comment and share what you're thankful for too. i think it's good medicine to have a thankful heart.

A thankful heart is not only the greatest virtue, but the parent of all the other virtues. ~Cicero

love and hugs,
terry lee


my first two, tara and alan ... ages 18 months and 3 yrs ... stylin' with their sunshades.


here they are again (most people thought they were twins) a few years later, sharing a big wheel


20 years later and they're still best of friends.


my memory's fuzzy, but at some point in between those years, i had another (late!!) baby. and my life wasn't complete until then. here's baby blue eyes matthew. light of my life.


his big brother and sister have always adored him. here they are hamming it up together


bittersweet photo ... i had no hair due to chemo but was feelin' sooooo blessed to have all. three. of. my. babes. together. at. one. time!!! thanksgiving 2007

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wonderful idea. I too am thankful for my wonderful kiddos. My oldest and I grew up together and I don't know what I would have done without him until his new Daddy found us! He is the bestest friend anybody could ever want and I would be remiss if I were not to mention how thankful I am for my sweet hubby. Keep em coming. You have a special heart for sharing your feelings!

Dana said...

Goodness, your 2 older kids did look like twins, didn't they? I pray that your bad holiday memories don't continue to suck the joy out of your present ones. I so agree with you that it is such a great feeling when all the kids are together. True contentment (is that a word?). I hope you have a great Thankssgiving. I am thankful that you are posting more often!!!!

Betty said...

Great idea terry lee. I'll try to join in daily too. I'm thankful for my family,my two sons,a wonderful daughter-in-law,my sweet little girl,my granddaughters,and my hubby of 36 years. Wow,36 years, thats doing good in these times. You have a beautiful family terry lee, I can see why you are so proud of them. And didn't know about the chemo, so glad things worked out well for you. Have a great day!! Hugs,Betty.

Mollye said...

Hey Terry Lee, Beautiful family and you too were beautiful with or without hair! I mean who really needs it with all the cute hats huh! Oh girl I do understand about simplifying the holidays and as a matter of fact, this year our Thanksgiving dinner is being prepared by Picadilly Cafeteria! I decided to let them do the cooking since our group was so small this year. Now Christmas that will be another story as everyone will be here and I can't get by with a trick like that. Happy Holidays, you make my days brighter by knowing you! Mollye