Day 275, November 14

"Life has meaning only in the struggles.  Triumph or defeat is in the hands of the Gods.  So let us celebrate the struggles."--Swahili warrior song

I don't agree with everthing in this quote, but I do like the idea that we grow through struggles.  When times are easy, when life goes smoothly, we are apt to "rest upon our laurels" and are reluctant to keep striving, to keep trying, to keep working.  Only when life presents us challenges do we stretch and test ourselves.

So, for today, I am (trying to be) grateful for struggles.

Day 274, November 13

Last week, Larry and I had the opportunity to participate in a service project, helping members of a Baptist church move chairs from the balcony back down to the main level.  (This church was filled with mud during the September floods and all the chairs had been moved to the upper level.)

This was described as a project suited to "the least of these," meaning even my poor old body with its artificial hip could help.  We formed a chair brigade, moving several hundred chairs in less than 45 minutes.  Baptists and Mormons worked along side each other, laughing, sharing stories, encouraging each other.

I was touched as I looked about, seeing gradeschool children working beside those in their 60s and 70s, all with a common goal.  When the work was finished, we congratulated each other on a job well done.

So, for today, I am grateful for the satisfaction of work.

Day 273, November 12

Last week, I wrote about my mother.  My nephew David (her grandson) left a comment about how "Grandma Georgia" remembered the small things--letters, cards, phone calls, etc.  In this age of email, texts, facebook, instagrams, etc, such things as cards and phone calls can get lost.   (I wonder sometimes if we are raising a whole generation of children who don't know how to write a letter, but that's a subject for another day.)

David was right--my mother did remember the small things.  She cut pictures from the newspaper or greeting cards to send to her grandchildren.  She slipped a dollar bill in cards to them.  She made sure birthdays and baptisms and other special events were remembered.

Mom didn't do grand gestures.  That wasn't her style.  But her everyday acts of kindness and thoughtfulness spoke grandly to all those who knew her.

So, for today, I am grateful for small things.  And, once again, I am grateful for Mom.

Day 272, November 11

Today is Verterans' Day.  For many of us, the idea of serving our country in the armed services, especially in a time of war, is completely foreign.  I cannot imagine the sacrifice, courage, and faith it took to put everything on the line the way so many men and women have.

Because I didn't know much about the history of Veterans' Day, I included some of the research I found:

World War I – known at the time as “The Great War” - officially ended when the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919, in the Palace of Versailles outside the town of Versailles, France. However, fighting ceased seven months earlier when an armistice, or temporary cessation of hostilities, between the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. For that reason, November 11, 1918, is generally regarded as the end of “the war to end all wars.”

My father and three of his brothers served during WWII.  Two of his brothers died during the war, one from injuries he received in battle and one from natural causes.  Through the Red Cross, Dad and his other brother could have come home to comfort their widowed mother, but they elected to stay and continue serving.

So, for today, I am grateful for those who served and who serve our country.

Day 271, November 10

A friend sent the following to me in an email.  I was so impressed with it that I decided to share it here:

Mary Ellen Tribby, founder and CEO at WorkingMomsOnly.com compiled a very interesting list of traits that are characteristic of successful and unsuccessful people.

Successful People Have a sense of gratitude Forgive others Accept responsibility for their failures Compliment Read everyday Keep a journal Talk about ideas Want others to succeed Share information and data Keep a “to-be” list Exude joy Keep a “to-do/project” list Set goals and develop life plans Embrace change Give other people credit for their victories Operate from a transformational perspective

Unsuccessful People Have a sense of entitlement Hold a grudge Blame others for their failures Criticize Watch TV everyday Say they keep a journal but don’t Talk about people Secretly hope others fail Horde information and data Don’t know what they want to be Exude anger Fly by their seat of their pants Never set goals Fear change Take all the credit of their victories Operate from a transactional perspective

As I read and re-read these two lists, I realized that I fall, at different times, on both sides.  On those times when I fall on the right side, I am less in tune with the Father and the Spirit.  I am in a defensive posture, thinking only of myself.  When I can say that I am (mostly) on the left side, I know I am in sync with the Lord.  

And isn't that the definition of true success?  When we are in sync with the Lord, we are successful.

So, for today, I am grateful for those times when I am truly on the Lord's side.

Day 270, November 9

A final (at least for now) story about Lincoln:

On his way from Springfield, Illinois to be inaugurated President of the United States of America, Lincoln recounted to a group in Trenton, New Jersey a story of the Revolutionary War that he had read as a boy in Weem's LIFE OF WASHINGTON.  He stated:  "I shall be most happy indeed if I shall be an humble instrument in the hands of the Almighty, and of this, his almost chosen people, for perpetuating the object of that great struggle."

The humility of these words profoundly touched me, especially in light of the self-aggrandizing behavior of current leaders.  Lincoln, who is thought by many to be the greatest president our country has ever known, saw himself as "an instrument in the hands of the Almighty."

So, for today, I am grateful for his example of humility.

Day 269, November 8

More about Lincoln:

When the end of the Civil War was in sight, Lincoln realized that many northern leaders were urging him to make an example of the Confederate leaders.  Even prominent pastors and clergy were calling for blood.

Instead of yielding to the pressure, Lincoln met with General Grant and General Sherman, saying that when victory came, they should treat their adversaries with kindness.  The Confederates should be allowed to return to their homes with their horses, mules, and their self-respect.

This did not earn Lincoln approval from many of the northern leaders.  They saw his compassion as weakness.  Lincoln saw it as the start of healing of a nation torn apart.

So, for today, and again, I am grateful for a great man.