Richard Wagamese, in his last book, entitled Embers begins his chapter on Gratitude with, “I raise the pipe of my being to the rising sun in openness and humility. With my eyes closed, I give thanks to the Life Giver and ask for the strength to be humble through the course of this day. I smudge myself with sacred medicines and give thanks for the blessings that are already present in my life. I ask for nothing. I only offer thanks. Then, in gratitude and humility, I enter the journey of each day. This is wakefulness, this is becoming, this is ceremony – and I am made more.”
“I ask for nothing – I only offer thanks.” How beautiful to read such refreshing words in, what often seems like a grasping, unhappy greedy culture. There is an old Sunday School hymn that runs like an earworm through my mind, “Count your blessings, name them one by one. Count your blessings see what God has done.” It is not a bad concept – it is just that the tune is so darn irritating when it gets stuck in my mind. Nonetheless, this is the weekend when we are encouraged, told, reminded, to count our blessings, to give thanks, to appreciate the harvest, to thank the earth for its provision, to generally be grateful.
It is a curious thing to think we have to be reminded to be thankful. In recent years people have been encouraged to keep Gratitude Journals almost as a therapeutic practice. A book by Diana Butler Bass called Gratful – The Transformative Power of Giving Thanks explores why gratitude is missing as a modern spiritual practice and illuminates how the practice of gratitude can lead to a greater connection with God, our world, and our own souls. Living in a world where we often hear that people are “Self-made” it is good to have at least one weekend when we lift our heads and look around and recognize the interconnectedness of life and creation and how utterly dependent we are on one another, the earth and God.
Happy Thanksgiving. Count your blessings and then offer thanks.
