What Are YOU Grateful For?

HAPPY

THANKS-GIVING!

This week I stopped at the Whole Foods Coop to pick up eggs. While looking out the windows I noticed these "gratitude leaves" affixed to the wall. Patrons of the Coop had been invied to share what they are gratefull for. I thought their sentiments worth sharing here. 

I myself am grateful for my family, friends, health,

God's mercy, memories, laughs, libraries, love and you. 

WHAT ARE YOU GRATEFUL FOR?

Today Is Thanksgiving. What Are You Thankful For?

"Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all the others."--Cicero

The feast included this turkey by Chef Micah.

Today is Thanksgiving Day, a day that commemorates the harvest of 1621 and the people who were spared from starvation. It's a day to be thankful for what we have and who we are. This is a day to give thanks for those around us, those who have been there for us, those who have helped us grow.

A few months after the Covid pandemic struck the world last year I wrote a blog post about the power of gratitude. Here's an excerpt from that piece.

I was reading a book in which at the end of one chapter the authors gave readers an assignment to make a list of 25 things they were grateful for. I decided to do this and found out something. Nearly the entire list was people, people who have enriched my life in a multitude of ways, family, friends, relatives, and eventually a few things like our home, Susie's garden, a career in which I could use my gifts, etc.

While writing this, other people keep coming to mind, people who helped me or cared about me or encouraged me, including teachers, coaches, and even a few strangers.  I'm also grateful that  I'm not dead yet. And overarching the whole is a sense of gratitude to God for this gift of life. 

"When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around."
--Willie Nelson

We have much to be grateful for. Today is a day to remember that.

Related Links

A Thankful Heart Is a Sign of Maturity by Trip Kimball

Grouchy? Cranky? Get a Gratitude Book by John Prin

The Power of Gratitude

Gratitude... it's like magic.

Yesterday I was reading a book in which at the end of one chapter the authors gave readers an assignment to make a list of 25 things they were grateful for. I decided to do this and found out something. Nearly the entire list was people, people who have enriched my life in a multitude of ways, family, friends, relatives, and eventually a few things like our home, Susie's garden, a career in which I could use my gifts, etc.

While writing this, other people keep coming to mind, people who helped me or cared about me or encouraged me, including teachers, coaches, and even a few strangers.  I'm also grateful that  I'm not dead yet. And overarching the whole is a sense of gratitude to God for this gift of life.

These thoughts prompted me to find quotes on gratitude to inspire you as well. Many of the names are familiar and some surprising. May you find something here to lift your heart and your spirit in these turbulent, unsettling times.

"Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all the others."
--Cicero

"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them."
--John F. Kennedy

"When it comes to life the critical thing is whether you take things for granted or take them with gratitude."
--G.K. Chesterton

"I don't have to chase extraordinary moments to find happiness - it's right in front of me if I'm paying attention and practicing gratitude."
--Brene Brown

"Gratitude is riches. Complaint is poverty."
--Doris Day

Cape May, NJ --1999

"Nine-tenths of wisdom is appreciation. Go find somebody's hand and squeeze it, while there's time."
--Dale Dauten

"Thankfulness is the tune of angels."
--Edmund Spenser

"Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things."
--Robert Brault

"When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around."
--Willie Nelson

"Gratitude and attitude are not challenges; they are choices."
--Robert Braathe

"Gratitude... It can change everything, almost like magic."
--Kat Senn

"If a fellow isn't thankful for what he's got, he isn't likely to be thankful for what he's going to get."
--Frank A. Clark

"Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it."
--William Arthur Ward

"If you want to turn your life around, try thankfulness. It will change your life mightily."
--Gerald Good

And finally, this verse from Paul's letter to the Philippians, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything give thanks." Words that we especially need today as much as ever.

Thank you for reading. 

Give Thanks. Black Friday Isn't Til Tomorrow

THROWBACK THURSDAY
Originally published in November 2009
With new links and new conclusion.

Last year a Minneapolis friend of mine went to his first Black Friday a.m. shopping experience. It was not planned, but both he and his wife were lying awake at four in the morning and wondering....

"Sounds like you're awake, too," she said.

"Yes I am. Wish I felt more tired."

"Well, since we're both awake, why don't we go shopping?"

And just like that, Bob was standing in front of a store with doors which were about to be opened in two minutes. A mob was pressed tight against the glass all eager and waiting. But what he noticed behind him was a small cluster of women in a huddle, planning their own strategy, a flying wedge. Yes, the old football pattern, only the aim was not a touchdown, just a smashing entrance. He'd never seen anything like it.

Sure enough, as the doors opened these young women made a brutal plunge into the mob, jarring, shoving, crashing and crushing. At least they weren't carrying guns.

For what it's worth, if you're really into finding Black Friday deals, and you're not thrilled about putting your life at risk to get them, there are an increasing number of places online where you can choose to shop from the luxury of your armchair, if you have a laptop and wireless Internet, or from your home office.

Personally, I don't get it. I suppose it gives journalists and bloggers something to write about.

The front page of today's paper lists the "best deals" of tomorrow including a $999 46" Samsung LCD HDTV and $197 HP Laptop with Celeron processor at Best Buy and $7 fleece jackets at Wal-Mart. Hey look, it's a $39 Polaroid V130 Camcorder at Target!

If you do decide to venture forth, perhaps Teddy Roosevelt's wisdom applies here... "Talk softly, and carry a big stick."

* * * *

Photo by Viktor Talashuk on Unsplash

2019 Addendum
An alternative to Black Friday shopping is to consider Saturday's emphasis on Buying Local. Here's my blog post from last weekend noting a few for those doing Christmas shopping. Local is always good any time of year though.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Throwback Thursday: Thanksgiving

Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash

Tomorrow is Black Friday. I know this because it has been in the news for a week. Also, today's Duluth News Tribune feels fifteen pounds heavier than normal. I'm guessing that Black Friday is some form of fix for people addicted to bargains.

Today is Thanksgiving. As its name implies, or rather exclaims, it is a day set aside to give thanks. Or at least that is how it was originally designated, as a day to celebrate the harvest, the bounty and abundance of God's blessing.

Nowadays it's a secular holiday for the most part, signifying a short work week (unless you work in retail), a Lions football game and time to eat turkey.

Yesterday it snowed pretty heavy here, though not as fiercely as predicted, for which I am personally thankful. I still have to blow the driveway though... but that's the price we pay for living here in Minnesota.

Thought for the day, from John F. Kennedy: "As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them."

* * * *
The above notes were written on a Thanksgiving eight years ago. Yesterday we only had a dusting of snow, not a dump. Also, when written in 2010 the holiday did not fall on the anniversary of President Kennedy's assassination, as it does today. One wonders how events like the Viet Nam War and Civil Rights movement would have played out had Kennedy lived. Because of what happened 55 years ago today we will never know.

Enjoy the day. And don't get too stuffed.

Throwback Thursday: Thanksgiving Seven Years Past

Piglet noticed that even though he had a very small heart, it could hold a rather large amount of gratitude. ~A.A. Milne

The following was written in 2010. With the exception of the description of the weather it could probably have been posted on any recent Thanksgiving. 

THROWBACK THURSDAY

Tomorrow is Black Friday. I know this because it has been in the news for a week. Also, today's Duluth News Tribune feels fifteen pounds heavier than normal. I'm guessing that Black Friday is some form of fix for people addicted to bargains.

Today is Thanksgiving. As its name implies, or rather exclaims, it is a day set aside to give thanks. Or at least that is how it was originally designated, as a day to celebrate the harvest, the bounty and abundance of God's blessing.

Nowadays it's a secular holiday for the most part, signifying a short work week (unless you work in retail), a Lions football game and time to eat turkey.

Yesterday it snowed pretty heavy here, though not as fiercely as predicted, for which I am personally thankful. I still have to blow the driveway though... but that's the price we pay for living here in Minnesota.

Thought for the day, from John F. Kennedy: "As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them."

* * * *

BONUS TRACK
-- The Power of Music to Comfort and Heal
Have a a very special day... and give thanks.

Mark Your Calendars: Upcoming Twin Ports Arts Events

"Silent gratitude isn't much use to anyone." ~G.B. Stern

First off, Happy Thaksgiving. We take a lot of things for granted as we push through our day-to-day. And we take a lot of people for granted, too. It feels good when people say they appreciate you, doesn't it. Be sure you tell others today how much you appreciate them.

* * * *

Somehow Black Friday seems to have become nearly as big a holiday in this country as Halloween and Easter. The commercial retail establishment has certainly succeeded to glomming together a marketing coup to take advantage of everyone's four-day weekends. Consumerism is a major feature of modern capitalism. But like all trends, if you look around you'll find countertrends.

Big Box Retailers have been the driver behind Black Friday as they give shoppers slashed prices and longer hours to encourage maximum spending in preparation for the Christmas holiday. In response local retailers have created an "afterparty" of sorts, a shopping day to encourage folk to buy local called Small Business Saturday.

In order to survive, artists need one of three things: a patron, a job that supports them, or entrepreneurial skills. Often it's all three. When we talk about "small businesses" we're talking about artists as well as the many others who provide services in our community. Small Business Saturday is a good day to support a few of our exceptionally talented locals.

ITEMS OF NOTE FOR THE WEEKEND AHEAD

Red Mug's 10-Year Anniversary Celebration

Ten years ago The Red Mug opened its doors. I can hardly believe it. Almost seems like it's always been there, but I know it hasn't because in the 90's I went to a Savage Press book signing upstairs when the Historic Board of Trade Building at Hammond and Broadway was an empty shell with nothing there except a longing by the new owners to fill it with tenants. My initial thought that evening was, "Wow, it would be really fun to play hide and seek in here."

Red Mug captured the downstairs corner of the building and has transformed it into a truly remarkable space. Owner Suzanne Johnson wanted to mark this milestone with a week of events culminating in Friday evening's celebration from 5 - 9 p.m. which will include food and drink specials, music, prizes, free cake and champagne, and special guest baristas. They will be taking donations for the Northland Food Shelf, a good reason not to spend everything you have on Black Friday.

Ryan Tischer's "Scratch, Ding and Clearance" Sale
Duluth landscape photographer Ryan Tischer produces memorable, eye-catching work. He's also active on the art fair circuit, which sometimes results in one's art getting nicked. Hence, in an effort to move a little inventory he's been hosting an annual open studio event in which he sells pieces at clearance prices.

This year is his 7th Annual Open Studio "Scratch, Ding and Clearance Sale." Many of us have been to his annual sales at Washington Studio. He now is in a new space and the public is invited.
The new studio can be found at 406 S. 93rd Avenue West. His announcement on Facebook offers all the details regarding hours or how to contact him for special appointments.


Otlak Holiday Fair 2014

This weekend six local artists are showing (and selling) handmade Arts and Gifts on Small Business Saturday, November 29. Some of our favorite local artisans will be showing their work at the Zeitgeist Atrium. from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Here's the lineup: Mary Reichert of Otlak Felt Studio makes handmade felt rugs and scarves; Sally Cavallaro, handmade eco-jewelry; Patty Sampson, jackets made from vintage kimono fabrics; Patty Salo Downs of Miina Designs offers one-of-a kind felted scarves, wraps, and handbags; Erika Mock presents her Textiles for Body and Soul; and Esther Piszczek who makes Zentangle(R)-inspired art, notecards, ornaments, and puzzles.

If you can't make it to the Zeitgeist, there will be other opportunities to purchase (or just look at) practical creativity. Here are two to mark on your calendar.

~Get It Local: Saturday, December 6, 10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. Peace Church, 1111 N. 11th Ave. E.,

~Armory Arts & Music Center and Snoodle Ceramic Studio and Gallery Holiday Celebration: Saturday, December 13, 2:00-8:00 p.m. Armory Annex, 1325 London Road, Duluth

Tonya Borgeson has organized an evening of clay, art, and music as she and fellow Northland artists share their work. You'll also get a chance to meet the Forging Community who teach classes in metal smithing at the Historic Armory Annex. Paul Piszczek will be there talking about pianos and Esther will be debuting a mirrored art installation and a patterned French Door mural on glass at this event.

NEXT TUESDAY
A couple quick reminders. Tweevenings at the Tweed, with Karin Kraemer.

Zentangle (R) and Wine Tuesday, December 2, 7:00-9:30 p.m. Master Framing Gallery, 1431 London Road, Duluth will give you the opportunity to learn the Zentangle method of pattern drawing in a relaxed atmosphere with music, wine, and snacks. Turn your doodle skills into art. No prior drawing experience necessary. Supplies will be provided and/or for purchase ($10).

Class cost: $35. RSVP required by Monday, December 1 at noon: episzczek@gmail.com or 218-464-0318. Class limited to 4. There is still room in this class!

* * * *

If you prefer to avoid parking and crowds altogether, you might be planning to shop online again this year. Both my books can be found with a click of the mouse. A Remarkable Tale from the Land of Podd is really a remarkable book. Each of the illustrations by Ian Welshons is a treasure. My first volume of short stories to appear in print is called Unremembered Histories is also on Amazon.

* * * *

I began this entry by encouraging you to tell someone you appreciate them. Well, I would like to say thank you to everyone who has encouraged me. It's meant a lot. Encouragement is something akin to a form of nourishment. Make sure your family and friends are well-fed.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Turkey Talk

I try to minimize the number of subscriptions I receive from various daily email newsletters, but I do sign up for things now and then. Even if I don't read them every day there are sometimes interesting subject lines and if not in a hurry I open and read it. Most also link to a website or blog for increased engagement. And if you find yourself never opening them, eventually you can choose to unsubscribe and reduce the inbox clutter that can oft be so time consuming to deal with.

One email that I still get every day is called wiseGEEK. It's essentially a daily bit of "Oh, that's interesting" or "Gee, I didn't know that" types of information. Today it was about turkeys. The subject line in the email stated, Only male turkeys gobble.

Although turkeys of all types share many characteristics, gobbling is not something every turkey does. Only male turkeys make the sound that is referred to as a gobble. Along with being known as tom turkeys, male turkeys are often referred to as gobblers. Female turkeys, generally known as hens, make a sound that is somewhat like a clicking noise.

If you clicked on a link for more info, you would go to their website and learn still more about turkeys, the first item below being one that I had written about in the past when writing about turkeys.

~ During the early years of the United States, Benjamin Franklin supported the wild turkey as the national bird. Instead of the wild turkey, however, the bald eagle was selected.

~ Wild turkeys tend to follow a similar pattern when it comes to eating times. Feeding in the mid-morning, followed by a second feeding in the mid-afternoon is most common. Many turkeys feed by using their beaks to cut through or rip vegetation. Their feet are used to scratch through snow or leaves to find other food sources.

~ The Turkey Trot was a popular dance move in the early 1960s, but the term also is used to describe the mating efforts of male turkeys. In the spring, male turkeys often spread their tail feathers while puffing out their chests and strutting around in the presence of hens. It is during this season that the male turkey is particularly prolific with gobbling, using the sounds to attract as many females as possible.*

What I find especially interesting about all this turkey talk is that our images of Thanksgiving as a holiday are so frequently filled with pilgrims and pumpkin pie and a horn 'o plenty that we forget that its origin was none other than Abe Lincoln, who in the midst of a great civil war set aside the last Thursday of November as a national day for giving thanks to God for His bounty.

The year that is drawing toward its close has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever-watchful providence of Almighty God.

You can read the proclamation in its entirety here.

Speaking of Lincoln, the new Spielberg film is exceptional and worth seeing. I'll be writing a review soon.

As for the original topic, if you'd like to hear a couple turkey gobbles up close, my YouTube clip might fit the bill to make your Thanksgiving day that more complete. Enjoy.


* Source:  wiseGEEK

They're Back. It's a Homecoming

In movies and in books I don't always need a happy ending to enjoy the story or get something out of it. But in real life, happy endings are absolutely wonderful. And when it involves your children, you always want a happy ending.

From time to time I've written here about the hikers Shane Bauer, Josh Fattal and Sarah Shourd who were arrested for trespassing in Iran, accused of espionage and imprisoned in the summer of 2009. In September 2010, after 410 days of solitary confinement, Sarah was released. But the anguished waiting for Josh and Shane's liberation went on for still another year.

To everyone's great relief, the drama had a good ending. Josh and Shane were home again.

Last Saturday evening in Pine City there was a quiet gathering of friends and supporters who had stood by Shane's family here in Minnesota these past two-plus years. My long-time friend Kelly McFaul-Solem is a photographer who shared these pictures from last Saturday's quiet celebration in Pine City. The family invited friends who had been standing alongside them through the ordeal. I asked Kelly if instead of my usual Wordless Wednesday photos that maybe I could share hers here. It seems like a good introduction to Thanksgiving.

As we give thanks for this gift of resolution, let's also remember all the other situations where loved ones are still waiting for a homecoming.


And thank you, Kelly, for these great pictures.

Thanksgiving

Tomorrow is Black Friday. I know this because it has been in the news for a week. Also, today's Duluth News Tribune feels fifteen pounds heavier than normal. I'm guessing that Black Friday is some form of fix for people addicted to bargains.

Today is Thanksgiving. As its name implies, or rather exclaims, it is a day set aside to give thanks. Or at least that is how it was originally designated, as a day to celebrate the harvest, the bounty and abundance of God's blessing.

Nowadays it's a secular holiday for the most part, signifying a short work week (unless you work in retail), a Lions football game and time to eat turkey.

Yesterday it snowed pretty heavy here, though not as fiercely as predicted, for which I am personally thankful. I still have to blow the driveway though... but that's the price we pay for living here in Minnesota.

Thought for the day, from John F. Kennedy: "As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them."

Much To Be Grateful For

We take so much for granted. Hence there is value each year on Thanksgiving day to reflect on how much we have to be thankful for. Friends, family, loved ones, a home, a job. It is a good tradition to make a list, to write it down. Writing forces you to clarify even further, and this process makes you even more appreciative.

But if you are an American, when you have finished your list you will have still not recorded some things that are so basic, so part of our lives, yet we take them for granted. One way to deepen your appreciation for how good you have it is to visit an impoverished Third World nation.

We did not do such a thing this week, but we did go there in pictures when the son of a friend of ours shared photos from his recent nine day trip to a slum called Cite Soleil outside Port au Prince. Having lived in Puerto Rico and Mexico, I have seen slums. But I'd not seen anything that closely compared to this (except perhaps some very poor sections of Mexico City.)

The shanty towns stretched far as your eye could see. No yards, no electricity, no running water, disease infested stenchwater and muck all through the streets, makeshift homes of corrugated steel and miscellaneous scrap materials, and death. One in four children never see their fifth birthday. Reality is grim, and hope is difficult to imagine.

Haiti is the most impoverished nation in the Western Hemisphere. For a bed, many people sleep on cardboard. AIDS is rampant. Food is lacking. And for most, even if you want to work there are no jobs. What is there to look forward to?

Without electricity, if you had as cell phone, there would be no way to re-charge the battery. No microwave ovens. No way to read this blog post because you would not have internet access, or a computer. Was that a mosquito bite or a malaria infection you just received?

The mission of The Haiti Orphans Project is to improve the lives of orphaned children in Haiti by providing medical care, access to education and equal access to basic services. If you wish to do more than "give thanks" you can visit their website and see what a few handfuls of good people are doing out on the front lines where poverty reigns.

http://www.haitiorphansproject.org/haiti/english/home88.html