Thanks and Giving

Thanksgiving is a special time of year  for many reasons. Families get together and share stories and memories of the past year. It is a time to give thanks for the many blessings we have received. It is also an opportunity to share from our abundance with others who live in poverty and need. 

If our families have been protected from the coronavirus, we have extra cause to be grateful. Not all families are so fortunate. Some are missing a family member who was with them last year. We can take a moment to remember that person and the way he/she has been a blessing to others.

Some people spend part of the day serving others in a homeless shelter or food kitchen. It is good for us and our children to see how hungry and poor some people are because of job loss or other circum-stances beyond their control. Being of service to the needy increases our gratitude and gives us joy too. 

We also can remember the thousands of immigrants and refugees who are living in camps and makeshift shelters and will have a meagre amount to eat on Thanksgiving. For them it will be just another day of waiting and uncertainty. Others will decide their future.

As we give thanks this Thanksgiving let us pray for all those who are grieving the loss of a loved one, or live in abject poverty, or are traveling with little to eat. They are God's children too, and our brothers and sisters. Let us not forget them as we give thanks.