I love this time of year... particularly Thanksgiving as, to me, it truly is a time to remember all that we have to be Thankful for. A 21 lb. turkey is thawing in the refrigerator... waiting for Thursday morning when I will smoke it over hickory wood after stuffing it with a cornbread, sage sausage and apple stuffing. Mashed potatoes, gravy, sweet potato casserole, baked beans, stuffed acorn squash, green bean casserole (of course), corn on the cob, ambrosia, blueberry and banana nut muffins, and home made bread along with three kinds of pies await my guests (neighbors and a few airmen from Luke's Air Force base.) Before they get to enjoy the repast, however, each will be required to tell me one thing they are Thankful for this year... for that is the true meaning of the day; remembering to give Thanks. At this time of year, our attentions are more often turned to those things which we do not have...rather than what we do. The season of want is upon us and by that I mean the season of non stop shopping. Thanksgiving will only be just behind us in 5 days, but long before this, while many of us were planning our dinners, setting our tables, and really giving thanks, stores, newspapers, and commercials were blasting Christmas and want ads all over the place. Now, this year black Friday is being held 7 days ahead of the norm and so there are now FIVE hurried, frenzied, chaotic, often angry filled weeks of shopping ahead... but where is Christmas? How many of us believe that if we head out to the malls today that it will do our souls good? Time for a reality check? As we were all counting our blessings yesterday how many of us actually focused on them and were not simply giving a rudimentary form of lip service to the "season"? Money is going to have to buy a lot this season and as our economy worsens, this may be the "new norm", however, it can NEVER buy the gifts that count the most: good health, a loving supportive marriage/relationship, healthy children and grandchildren, the fulfillment of creative expressions, a general love of nature, good friends or inner peace. How often do we forget this? No, it is NOT because we are ungrateful but because we get distracted by the folly and glimmer of "life". NOW is the time to remember. What if the Universe suddenly gave you a choice? You are guaranteed all of the afore mentioned gifts (blessings) but you cannot have that new house or 42 inch TV? Or you were granted those material things but literally throw the dice to determine life's blessings? What would you choose? For me, this option has been brought to me several times... and though I may not have the best of health etc... I am glad that I have been blessed and that a fancy home, material things, and status mean nothing to me. I wish I had been able to impart that feeling to my own children. Ah well. So today, as I watch the beginning of a new dawn, I am meditating on the blessing of health. Heaven knows we cannot buy it, but it can sure put us into a world of debt don't you agree? Sadly good health is NOT for sale. Health is a priceless gift from God that most of us take for granted until we become sick. So today, take a moment to ponder and realize that even if you have nothing else, if you have your health -- you are wealthy indeed. If you have a healthy heart, healthy mind, and reserves of energy and stamina as well as creative energy and the ability to see beauty in all things, the world is literally lying at your feet. Where there is life, there is hope. As I continue to battle cancer and other health issues, I am reminded that health is NOT just the absence of sickness. To me, good health is vitality, vigor, high energy, emotional equilibrium, mental clarity,and physical endurance. These are the gifts I pray for So this morning, I will take my vitamins (lots of those now), use my eye drops, take the thyroid medications and more... while thanking God for the health I do enjoy and ask for more. If there is only one spiritual lesson I can give to you today, it is to ask. Then believe Ask and you shall receive. Ask and be specific and if you don't get it well at least you tried and the Universe is holding that request for just the right time. Blessed be.