Making Them Proud (11/04/2023)

This morning I remembered all the years I prepared the children of multiple parishes for the Christmas pageant. I remembered how messy and disorganized our practices always looked and how concerned the other adults were that it would be a huge fiasco. And I remember gathering all the children together just before we’d start and telling them, “You know how much your family has cared about you and how much they’ve done for you. Now is your chance to thank them, to make them proud. You can do this.” And every year, everyone did just that.

This month, the month of November, I dedicate to thanksgiving. Yep, the whole month. I begin with the LORD. Daily I thank the LORD for my life, the lives of my family and friends, even the lives of those who sought to make my way more difficult but, in the end, only added to my determination. I thank the LORD for His love without which I couldn’t exist let alone accomplish anything. And I give thanks for grace and blessings He showers upon me daily, actually, moment to moment.

Then I spend time everyday recalling those who have helped me along the way, and I try to give them thanks. I have so very many. No one knows better than I that we do not make this journey alone and entirely on our own efforts and merit. I begin with those who are no longer with me. I try to remember faithfully all that they sacrificed for me, all that they gave to me that helped me grow into the one I am.

I thank my dad for my life, for his wisdom, for his belief in me even when I doubted myself, for his faith that served as a light on my journey. I thank my sister, Betty, for loving me even when my behavior wasn’t loveable. I thank her for her humor, for her insistence that “it’s not about you.” I thank her for teaching me about the joy of rescuing others on the journey. I thank my brother, Rod, for his wit, for his dedication to family, for his companionship along the way. I thank my grandmother Lena who taught me about peace, the peace that comes only from reliance upon the LORD. I thank my grandson, Michael, who showed me how powerful love can be and how we all have a purpose in our lives.

I also spend time thanking the LORD for those whom He has sent to accompany me along the way. I begin with my family. I give thanks for my mother without whom I would not be. I thank the LORD for my sister, Deidre, and her lessons in meekness, patience and the gift of gratitude. I give thanks for my brother, Randy, the steady worker who treasures his family and has a laugh that could light up the world. I give thanks for my brother, Bryon, who shares his faith with me and his encouragement when I most need it.

I raise up my bible study group who have helped me more deeply appreciate the WORD, the women of the parish who remind me of the beauty of servanthood, the neighbors who make sure I’m okay when they know I’m struggling, those responsible for being the human voice of the LORD’s call to serve in parishes, at the diocese, and as a seminary professor. I thank the LORD for those who read my blog and write comments or send e-mails of encouragement. I even thank the LORD for whoever it was that put that $20 bill under the formula can in the Beloit market in 1974 that allowed me to buy the groceries I needed but didn’t have the money to buy.

And of course, I give thanks for my immediate family, my husband without whom I don’t know where I’d be, our children who have loved me into a better person and taught me so much about the LORD’s love for me, my grandchildren who add so much to our lives not to mention our gatherings. Every one of them has given me way more than I have ever given them. The LORD has used their love, their companionship, their support to keep me going even in the darkest hours. I thank the LORD daily for them.

It's a busy month, November. There are so many people without whom I wouldn’t have made it to this point: relatives, friends, neighbors, co-workers, fellow servants in service groups, anonymous donors, doctors, nurses, repairmen, police officers, perfect strangers. And with every memory, with every thank you, I pray that as I continue on my journey, I can make them proud: the LORD, all the angels and saints, all who have given so that I might live and prosper, all who have helped me find myself and become.

Until tomorrow, let us all love well.