As Thanksgiving approaches I have an image in mind of a cornucopia, the horn of the goat Amalthaea in classical mythology, today used as a symbol of abundance. I see that horn-shaped receptacle filled with fruits, nuts, vegetables, and breads serving as a centerpiece on a table spread with all the fixings of a scrumptious Thanksgiving meal. It is in that “horn of plenty” I see an abundance of things for which I am grateful.
Fall and Football: Fall is my absolute favorite time of year. I love the cooler temperatures and colors of the season. And I love football, Notre Dame football in particular. On Oct. 15, I checked off an item on my bucket list when I attended a Notre Dame football game on the South Bend campus. While I have been to a Notre Dame game at Purdue and I’ve visited ND’s campus several times, I hadn’t yet experienced football in the shadow of Touchdown Jesus.
A couple, Adams Central teachers and former students of mine, whose oldest daughter attends ND, offered us tickets to the ND-Stanford game. Jim and I snapped them up with little thought. We tailgated with them, their family, friends, and some ND students. While the game resulted in a loss for the Irish, I felt like I had won. The weather was perfect. I wore new ND apparel, watched the entire half-time show (bands get a lousy break during televised games.), ate yummy tailgate food, and we caught up with friends we don’t see often enough. All the makings of a dream come true.
Financial Stability: Because we’ve been somewhat cautious with our funds, we’ve been able to finance some upgrades. Jim has spent the last few months building a deck on the west side of our house facing the channel. It’s a beauty, approximately 20’ x 18’ (360 square feet) with steps on the west and north sides. Jim created a “reading nook” with 7-foot benches meeting perpendicularly in southwest corner. Because the materials are composite, the deck won’t need refinishing. Each of the 13 posts anchoring the railing has a light sitting on top. Jim 3-D printed and installed tiny lights to illuminate the steps. He also 3-D printed brackets, post cap adapters, and trim pieces that were not readily available to order. I’m sometimes jealous of the time Jim spends with the 3-D printer, but I am grateful for his skills.
I’m thankful for the work done this fall to raise our driveway, sidewalk, and front steps. The three-inch difference between the garage floor and driveway is gone. We no longer need to gun the engine to park the car in the garage. I no longer fear running into the chest freezer that sits in front of my car. I was fascinated watching the process of raising the concrete and am grateful for the technology that makes such repairs possible.
After selling our 2007 Puma in December and breaking my hip in February, I feared our camping days were over. Jim assured me they weren’t; I would heal and we would get another camper. A trip to the Fort Wayne RV show in October resulted in a camper upgrade. We purchased a unit with features we wanted including a king-size bed to accommodate us and Java, our 100-pound chocolate lab. We’ll have heated tank pads for camping in colder climes and dark skies country. Those wrapped tanks and two solar panels on the roof will allow Jim to realize one of his bucket list dreams—camping in dark sky country to photograph celestial bodies. We’ll pick up our camper after Thanksgiving, take a short trip in December, then store it until spring.
Health: My health is by no means perfect, but I won’t complain. A shadowy spot showed up on my April mammogram. According to the surgeon who removed my cancerous tumor in May 2021, in all likelihood that shadow was scar tissue. To be sure she scheduled a follow-up mammogram in October. Those “pictures” confirmed that’s exactly what it was. Whew!
The hip that I broke in February has healed well. I haven’t used my cane much at all lately. After a long car ride or a period of sitting for a couple hours, occasionally I need that cane to steady the first few steps I take. I have no pain, but sometimes in the evening an achy tiredness prompts me to take Tylenol PM. Progress, slow and steady!
Since December 2021, I’ve dropped 40 pounds. That loss has taken great stress off my joints. My knees don’t ache. The loss of pounds has also brought about a change in medications. I am taking less insulin than I was a year ago, and last week my nurse practitioner removed one of the blood pressure meds from my morning regimen. By the way, I hit my goal WW weight in October. My scale now reads the same as what’s been listed on my driver’s license for decades.
Family, Friends, and Faith: We all are probably missing family members around our Thanksgiving tables — some absent for years, others more recently. But how very grateful we can be for the time we shared with them and for those who remain. I am thankful that for Thanksgiving Jim’s brother and sister-in-law will join us and Jim’s son and daughter for the long holiday weekend. I have repeatedly given thanks that I reconnected with an estranged sister this summer. And just last week I shared a long-overdue coffee with my oldest niece.
I am grateful for friends, old and new. I still have regular conversations via texts or phone calls with two dear high school friends. Last week I had lunch with my best friend from college. Though it’s been more than a decade since we’d last talked, there was such ease in our conversation. I was able to celebrate with a friend of three decades her 80th birthday. I’m fortunate to have dear friends in two book clubs and so glad to share our love for books. I count the writers of this column as friends, too. I give thanks for our Bluewater Drive neighbors. I’m also grateful for Sisters in Heart, the women in my Bible study group. They truly lift me up as do my WW friends.
In this world and the next, I would be lost without my faith, a faith that grew stronger when Danielle, my daughter, died 18 years ago at the age of 18 1/2. (She was big on those halves!) I couldn’t have gotten through that very dark season of my life without the belief that we will see each other again because of the sacrifice Christ made for us. That’s my faith.
Here’s the Thing: Whether or not you regularly practice gratitude, take time this holiday season to reflect. Maybe some questions will help.
What about where you live are you thankful? (i.e. we didn’t get the 50 to 70 inches of snow the Buffalo area received last week.)
What have you been able to pay for lately for which you are grateful? (i.e., gasoline prices are slowly coming down.)
For whom are you grateful? (i.e. we have a chocolate lab named Java who loves unconditionally.)
What about your health are you thankful? (i.e. Jim’s liver numbers are now where they should be.)
By the way, I am thankful that you read “Here’s the Thing.”
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Editor’s Note: This is one of a series of articles written by a group of retired teachers — Ken Ballinger, Billy Kreigh, Marianne Darr-Norman, and Anna Spalding. Their intent is to spur discussions at the dinner table and elsewhere. You may also voice your thoughts and reactions via The News-Banner’s letters to the editor.
