In a few hours, my house will be filled with aromas of casseroles and pies, sounds of children’s laughter and sights of loved one’s smiles. We’ll eat until our stomachs ache, then we’ll wish aloud we hadn’t eaten so much. The men will relax in front of whatever football game is on T.V. The women will plan our Black-Friday-now-on-Thursday shopping trip. The kids will run from room to room, finding ways to entertain themselves.

So much the same

There will be a million reasons to be thankful for this day. Still, the dull ache of emptiness already gnaws at me, reminding me of the subtle shifts that have taken place from year to year.

So much has changed

How do we give thanks for unwanted changes? How can we be grateful for the very things that cause the ache and the longing? How do we say, Even in this, God, you are good?

I’ve frequently asked these questions aloud over the past year. A wise friend has reminded me to be thankful for what was and what remains, and to hope for what may be.

Give thanks for the journey

And for the pain of learning

If ever there was a season to let go of expectations, this is the one…these days between Thanksgiving and Christmas. This is the time to understand that the present can’t hold up to our memories of the past, nor can it fulfill our longings for what may or may not one day be.

Give me grace somehow

For this moment right now

When this day is over and we’re curled warm in our beds, may we all give thanks for moments of same, moments of change, moments of pain and moments of grace.