Thanksgiving Day is over, yet I keep returning to the sweet moments. Am I getting older, or was this the nicest Thanksgiving ever?... Did I say that last year, too?
Our oldest guest was 83, the youngest guest just turned nine years old this year. I am thankful for each kind face circled around our family table, just as I am quietly comforted by the memories of each family member who is no longer here with us.
Their absence no longer painful, I can now recall without tears the times spent with them. There's a verse from Deuteronomy that so beautifully illustrates the legacy left by previous generations."You will draw water from cisterns you did not dig, and you will eat from vineyards and olive trees you did not plant."
Think about your own life, and recall all the people whose work made it possible for you to enjoy today. It's a vast circle, isn't it?
It's humbling to consider all the countless secret and public sacrifices made by those who came before us. In today's current holiday shopping frenzy, the term "sacrifice" isn't mentioned very often, but it's worth thinking about. Long after this year's gifts are unwrapped and cast aside, it's the lasting personal legacy of love that will remain. And isn't that the best gift of all?
Be well.
