By Kelly Carr

Growing up, I thought Thanksgiving was an OK holiday, but I often pushed past it in the anticipation of putting up our Christmas decorations. It seems like stores these days have the same mindset. They jump from Halloween costumes to Christmas trees with no breath in between. Poor, forgotten Thanksgiving.

Unexpected Places

In recent years, I’ve treasured the concept of Thanksgiving—we get a national holiday to encourage a benevolent character trait. How great is that? We have much to be thankful for, and it’s nice to have a day set aside to be reminded of that.

Plus there’s all that yummy food—now you’re speaking my love language! I’m super thankful for all the home cooking that others plan and execute (because my skills and contributions are small) to make the day a delight. 

Because Thanksgiving is so close to that huge holiday in December, I know many families must make tough choices on which holiday they can celebrate together, based on travel plans and time off work. Some who are far from home discover new neighbors to feast with. Perhaps your Thanksgiving will be spent in an unexpected place with an eclectic group of people. 

This week The Lookout is filled with stories from folks who have found themselves in different settings for their holiday: 

• Nancy was at first disappointed that she was far from family on Thanksgiving—until she was invited to celebrate with some new friends. 

• Jeanette was not at the place in her life she expected to be—but discovered blessings to thank God for, despite the pain.

• Jed and Renee live overseas as missionaries but seek out ways to teach American Thanksgiving traditions to their kids. 

Thankful Spirit

When the day rolls around, how do you kindle the flame of thankfulness when you celebrate? Perhaps you go around the table and have everyone tell one thing they are thankful for. Maybe you silently ponder the way God has brought you through another year. One time my mom wrote each family member a note and laid it at our place setting, telling us why she appreciated us. (She’s so thoughtful!)

This week, who will sit at your Thanksgiving table? How might you show your thankfulness for their lives? Consider who else might be blessed by an invitation to eat with you and share in your spirit of thankfulness—contact them and ask them to join you. Even if the timing doesn’t work out for them to attend, they will likely feel grateful that you asked. 

No matter where we are and who we are with on the actual Thanksgiving day, we can keep a spirit of thanks in our lives throughout the year. Yes, that sounds cliché, but every once in a while we can all use a reminder.