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Don’t let the turkeys get you down! It’s almost Thanksgiving, and it’s wild game time!
I’m still a bit haunted by the gobbling of these dudes from my days in Baltimore. Every year I’d go live from Hideaway Farm. Farmer Tom would talk to me, and I’d try to encourage the birds, despite their looming fate. Trot to freedom, escape while you can! The birds just meandered and vocalized. Alas…
“I’ll opt for a pie (less traumatic)”
Perhaps it really is all about mindset. Astoria, the wild turkey, spent her summer strolling the streets of Midtown Manhattan. She frequented Saks and perched near the actual Waldorf Astoria.
Bird experts describe her as an awesome athlete! She eluded capture numerous times. Somehow, likely on her own terms, Astoria ended up on Roosevelt Island. The friendly fowl, who flew to celebrity status, is expected to dine on blueberries this Thanksgiving!
“Not a Macy’s Float!”
The country of Turkey was at war with San Marino way back in 1935. Thankfully, that’s over.
But for the last twenty years, San Marino, a country of 33 thousand, has been battling a dubious designation: the world’s worst soccer team. Until two weeks ago, they hadn’t won a match. Plot twist! The long suffering fans, who call themselves the San Marino Ultras, finally have a reason for gratitude. The team managed to defeat Liechetenstein 🤩
Sometimes it takes a while for gratitude to flourish. Yet there are ways to maximize it (even if you’re a diehard fan in constant wait of a win). Findings from Baylor University’s “Research in Growth and Human Thriving Science”, points to three science-based gratitude mechanisms:
DEEP REFLECTION: Humans get used to their current state and must intentionally focus on thankfulness.
THINKING ABOUT A GIVER: Make it personal. It’s more effective to be grateful for a human than a thing. Write letters! Scientists say this increases empathy and transcendent indebtedness much more than a simple gratitude list.
EXPRESS GRATITUDE OUTWARDLY: Send the letter. Vocalize your thanks. People treasure this and it leads to expansive generosity to even more people. It’s contagious!
Gratitude composes a note into a chord.”
A chord must contain at least three notes. In the Bible, David’s loyal warriors were called “The Three”. There’s this incredible passage in 2 Samuel where David and “the three” are hiding in a cave because an enemy squad lies in wait in the valley. David exclaims how much he’d like a drink of water from that area. So “the three” actually penetrate enemy lines, draw water from the gate there, and bring it back to David. But David won’t drink it. Instead he pours it out as an offering to God. Verse 17 reads: “There is no way, God, that I’ll drink this! This isn’t mere water, it’s their life-blood—they risked their very lives to bring it!”
Gratitude recognizes sacrifice. It doesn’t indulge. It elevates.
I also see this in the Oscar-winning “Saving Private Ryan”. A squadron is tasked with saving a paratrooper whose three brothers have been killed in action. Once they finally find Sgt. Ryan, he doesn’t even want to go back with them. Eventually, though, the ultimate sacrifices of the soldiers become all too real to Ryan. A dying rescuer tells Ryan to “earn the sacrifices made to send him home.” The last scene is an older Ryan with his family at Normandy. He says to the graves, “I hope that, at least in your eyes, I’ve earned what all of you have done for me.”
I believe Jesus died for us, so we could experience life with eternal purpose. It’s the ultimate gift, something we could never earn, but something we could accept with gratitude. In a sense, we are all “Private Ryans”.
Are we aware? Are we grateful? It’s personal. Let’s take time to really reflect this Thanksgiving. Thank YOU for intaking these words and sharing the good!
HAPPY THANKSGIVING! 💜
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