Thanksgiving at our house feels much like Christmas, but
without the gifts. The Christmas tree sparkles in the entryway; stockings hang
over the fireplace. A wooden Nativity sits on an end table, so that little
hands can play with it; a glass one nestles in a miniature stable above the
stockings, so that older eyes can look and imagine.
Tables welcome our family members with flickering candles
and beautiful china. Savory and sweet smells flow from the kitchen, while
children laugh and play throughout the house.
Thanksgiving Day provides a specific time to offer
thankfulness for the life we have been given in this country—and Christmas
follows it with the celebration of the birth of Jesus. I was raised in a home
that celebrated with hearty thanksgiving our life and our Savior from the end
of Oct. to New Years.
As a mom I like to provide my family with the same
atmosphere of whole-hearted thankfulness throughout the holidays. A special Advent book waits for us each
evening in the family room during the holidays, and colorful picture books call
for small, chubby hands to turn their pages.
 |
| Celebrate |
Christmas music, delicious smells, flickering candles and
special stories say, I love you to my
family, and thank you, Jesus, for life
in our home. Celebrating whole-heartedly is the best way to say thank you and I love you.
Let’s not isolate Thanksgiving to the third Thursday in
November, but let’s live it out in an atmosphere of celebration from Oct. 31 to
New Years, as we celebrate the life we have been given and the One who came, so
that we could live.
