Porter Taylor Thanksgiving 2024

Here we are: another Thanksgiving: turkey, Macy’s Parade, football. We have been here so many times, the temptation is to go on automatic. Then there’s the political mess in our country and for those of us in Asheville, NC there’s the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.

And yet, we are alive. And yet we have had so many blessings. And yet, God is still in charge. As the poet wrote, “Hope is the hardest love we carry.”

As I thought about Thanksgiving, I remembered some quotes from Henri Nouwen:

“To be grateful for the good things that happen in our lives is easy, but to be grateful for all our lives—the good as well as the bad, the moments of joy as well as the moment so sorrow, the success as well as the failures, the rewards as well as the rejections—that requires hard spiritual work….Still, we are only truly grateful people when we can say “thank you” to all that has brought us to the present moment.”

Yes, I have some regrets, but I also realize that the dead ends of my life as well as the mistakes I made forced me to embrace what matters and let go of what doesn’t. It’s why I am a “grateful” recovering alcoholic. To get sober I had to remember who I truly am and why I am here. This disease is part of my thanksgiving.

So, today before we eat the turkey and turn on the television, we will give thanks for everything because we are alive to give thanks, and because we have today to see what surprises God has in mind. I keep embracing Julian of Norwich’s words in the middle of a plague: “All will be well and all manner of things will be well.” The truth is we don’t manage our lives; we live them, by giving thanks for the moments that have brought us to where we are.

It's always best to close with a saint. St. Francis’ prayer of gratitude:

“Wherever we are, in every place, at every hour, at every time, every day and continually, let us truly and humbly believe, hold in our heart, love, honor, adore, serve, praise, bless, glorify, exalt, magnify, and give thanks to the Most High and Supreme Eternal God, Trinity and Unity, Father, Son, and Holy Spriit: to Him who is Creator of all, Savior of all, without beginning or end, unchangeable, invisible, incomprehensible, blessed, praiseworthy, glorious, exalted, sublime, most high, gentle, lovable, delightful, and, above all else, desirable, for ever and ever.”