Our family, Heather and my 17 year old grandsons, used your alternative thoughts about gratitude at our dinner table last night. I was especially awed by what each grandson shared. Thanks! And Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!
We will be reading prayers of thanksgiving from Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer followed by discussion. She commented that in the indigenous world they give thanks every day not just one day/year.
Yes! I have been rather judgmental to the whole Blessed, Thankful, Grateful marketing thing. It has always seemed shallow and Pollyanna-ish to me. I have taken to grumbling every time I see a shirt or plaque. Being thankful is important though, thanks for opening me up to a different way to express it
Personally, I find it odd that our culture has set aside one day out of the year specifically to give thanks. Perhaps this scarcity is where the difficulties of implementation rest. Without cultivating a deep inner sense of appreciation for the gift of grace that actually forms and sustains absolutely everything, it is awkward to say the least to try and come up with a sincere rendition on one day!
The best response to the turkey hostage question that I ever heard was, " if only you had given me some advance notice." Your excersize here takes care of that issue. Thank you for the inspiration.
Diane: Thank you. There is potentially a lot of stress and unspoken anxiety at the holiday table for most families. Centering our gatherings on being grateful, healthy and alive in these chaotic times is very important. May we all share in the universal ideal of peace and fellowship in all our gatherings
Diane thank yoh!! I am grateful FOR what you give me through your books, zoom, and these reflections! THOUGH the Pandemic and Now you have Nurtured my soul!!
I would like to share a faithful centered memory of an ancestor to pass on to the next generation. Then expand on that with something evolving about my own faith journey. As Valarie Kaur reminds us, we too will someday be ancestors and how is it that our own actions and wisdoms will be remembered? Diana I once heard you reference an exercise for your students to write a letter many years forward into the future ( was is 100 years?) referring back to the current faith community about what /why their actions in our current times made a difference and why they were thankful. Hopefully this is a meaningful exercise that drives some visionary action.
When I was a college professor I asked students to investigate their own heritages In reference to remembering song, story, and childhood chants. This created an emotional storehouse; students initially resistant found themselves in a space of vulnerability and a new love for themself and their past connections, even those that were deeply painful. To then move that to the future is an amazing and powerful idea. I am grateful
Our family, Heather and my 17 year old grandsons, used your alternative thoughts about gratitude at our dinner table last night. I was especially awed by what each grandson shared. Thanks! And Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!
We will be reading prayers of thanksgiving from Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer followed by discussion. She commented that in the indigenous world they give thanks every day not just one day/year.
So Brilliant - such a help to reframe this phrase used often around my table of grace!
Yes! I have been rather judgmental to the whole Blessed, Thankful, Grateful marketing thing. It has always seemed shallow and Pollyanna-ish to me. I have taken to grumbling every time I see a shirt or plaque. Being thankful is important though, thanks for opening me up to a different way to express it
Personally, I find it odd that our culture has set aside one day out of the year specifically to give thanks. Perhaps this scarcity is where the difficulties of implementation rest. Without cultivating a deep inner sense of appreciation for the gift of grace that actually forms and sustains absolutely everything, it is awkward to say the least to try and come up with a sincere rendition on one day!
The best response to the turkey hostage question that I ever heard was, " if only you had given me some advance notice." Your excersize here takes care of that issue. Thank you for the inspiration.
Diane: Thank you. There is potentially a lot of stress and unspoken anxiety at the holiday table for most families. Centering our gatherings on being grateful, healthy and alive in these chaotic times is very important. May we all share in the universal ideal of peace and fellowship in all our gatherings
Diane thank yoh!! I am grateful FOR what you give me through your books, zoom, and these reflections! THOUGH the Pandemic and Now you have Nurtured my soul!!
This connects up very well with your reflection from a year ago on 1 Thessalonians 5:11-18ish ... IN all circumstances, not FOR all circumstances.
Oh my goodness! Thank you so much for your insight! Prepositional insight! Amazing and so spit on! Thank you!
I would like to share a faithful centered memory of an ancestor to pass on to the next generation. Then expand on that with something evolving about my own faith journey. As Valarie Kaur reminds us, we too will someday be ancestors and how is it that our own actions and wisdoms will be remembered? Diana I once heard you reference an exercise for your students to write a letter many years forward into the future ( was is 100 years?) referring back to the current faith community about what /why their actions in our current times made a difference and why they were thankful. Hopefully this is a meaningful exercise that drives some visionary action.
When I was a college professor I asked students to investigate their own heritages In reference to remembering song, story, and childhood chants. This created an emotional storehouse; students initially resistant found themselves in a space of vulnerability and a new love for themself and their past connections, even those that were deeply painful. To then move that to the future is an amazing and powerful idea. I am grateful
For this thinking. Thank you!