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Thanksgiving day reminds me of the word “gratitude”

Thanksgiving day being the most celebrated holiday in the states reminds me of the word “gratitude”.


A few years ago, I was planning to bake Pumpkin Pie because I remembered just how delicious it was during my visit in Missouri a few years ago.

My daughter said “we’re not Americans, mom so why should we celebrate Thanksgiving Day”. (But did you know that, for several decades, Thanksgiving had also been celebrated in the Philippines?)

I protested “but I love Pumpkin Pie” and I want to bake it to feel like I am celebrating with my brother and sisters in the states. My siblings often wished I’d visit them during Thanksgiving day but I just tell them that I will be with them in spirit. So I thought baking the Pumpkin pie was a great idea

But…

Nope, my daughters refused to acknowledge Thanksgiving day the American way.

As a compromise, I agreed to bake Pumpkin Pie on Christmas day and thought that was the end of the discussion.

Then, I gleefully announced “let’s honor and reflect on your paternal great-great American grandfather who arrived in the Philippines in 1921 from Iowa. He was quite an adventurer just like you, Lauren.”

Photo: Great great grandfather of my husband
I think that settled the issue.

I love looking back to the past and knowing the roots of my family. I like knowing their way of life, their personalities and quirks to see if these were passed on to my children.

I am grateful for the life and the traditions that have been passed on through the years.

Thanksgiving day being the most celebrated holiday in the states reminds me of the word “gratitude”. I can affirm my gratitude any day I want to but I want to dedicate this entry especially for my siblings who will celebrate Thanksgiving day. I want to share my gratitude to them.

In honor of Thanksgiving Day, I have a lot to be thankful for today and everyday of my life.

gratitude
1. I am thankful for second chances and a new normal.

2. I am thankful for the laughter that rings true in my home. There’s nothing like a family who laughs together.

3. I am thankful for financial challenges because it taught us discipline that money can be budgeted wisely for basic necessities.

4. I am thankful for a loving husband that never gave up on me.

5. I am thankful for the excruciating pain brought about by my son’s death because it transformed me into a more compassionate person.

6. I am thankful for my two girls, that despite the turbulent teen years due to their sibling’s death, they never resorted to drugs or alcohol.

7. I am thankful of new and old friendships ,a comfortable place to be myself.

8. I am thankful for negative feedback as I can make an honest assessment of myself without jeopardizing my identity.

9. I am thankful for the internet, blogging and all of YOU, twitter followers, the lurkers and readers of my blog as you help me fulfill my mission in life.

10. I am thankful to God who I thought abandoned me but never really left me after all.

gratitude Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. I have learned the magical lesson that making the most of what I have turns it into more. I have learned an important concept to get me through this stressful time and that is gratitude. I learn to say thank you, for all these problems and feelings. I am full of gratitude because today’s pain could be tomorrow’s joy.

What are you thankful for?

17 thoughts on “Thanksgiving day reminds me of the word “gratitude””

  1. Hi Noemi! Gratitude really plays a big role in our lives. Without it, we can never appreciate the beauty and madness of life. I have learned to be thankful and grateful sometime last year. From being a whiner, I have learned to content myself with the things that I have. I have learned to be thankful even with my problems…even if it hurts so much at times because there are leassons learned. I thank God for your blog, I am really learning a lot.

    Pie Jamaries last blog post..29 means…

  2. it’s funny, i crave filipino food all the time. i can’t cook filipino food, it’s so sad. it’s understandable that we miss certain kinds of food.

    i’m pretty sure a huge population here don’t even know the history of thanksgiving. the reason why they look forward to thanksgiving is 1) long weekend; 2) black friday (a lot of shopping sales) 3) turkey and cranberry sauce.

    i haven’t heard anyone here give thanks during thanksgiving. that’s just me, maybe because i’m filipino and i don’t practice this tradition. after that’s said, i am thankful all the time, i don’t need thanksgiving to give thanks.

    1. my siblings living in the US always use Thanksgiving as an occasion to be grateful to my dad who gave them the opportunity to travel to the US. It has nothing to do with the history of the Americans and Indians .

  3. everyday is a day to be much thankful of–a thanksgiving day. there is so much we have in life, that is if we look around us. there may be people who are very well off, but do we think they are really? and do they have much to thank for (if they get their wealth from the coffers of the government? not that i judge for i cannot). at the same time there are very poor ones–helpless. yes, everyday is thanksgiving day–a day to rejoice too and a day to share.

    hello, Noems!

    Sexy Moms last blog post..What Perfect Creation of God–a poem for you, dear Monica on your birthday

  4. There are so many things to be thankful for, as a song goes, “Count your blessings instead of sheep”

    Knowing that there is so much we have to be thankful for, that in itself is something to be thankful about 🙂

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