Anyone following this blog regularly may be surprised by this post. Last week Wish Carefully introduced a series titled The Saga of Rosy and June. I planned to launch it today. However, the saga is a bit dark in some ways, and this is a week in the United States at least that is set aside for giving thanks.

The problem this year, though, is giving thanks may be hard for many. From the leftover pandemic issues to the violence being reported on every news outlet and political turmoil, finding something for which you are thankful can be a challenge.

Unlike some of the pieces you may read, I’m not here today to tell you to try harder. I’m not here to tell you how bad I’ve had it and try to shame you into feeling thankful for something. Nor am I here trying to convince you God is in control and everything will work out if you give it time.

Rather, I am here to suggest we all have something for which to be thankful. It may be hidden by the trials and tribulations upon which we tend to focus. Yet, it is still there if we quit focusing on the negative and give the positive a chance to get our attention.

I learned this lesson in a rather embarrassing way a few years ago. I traveled to Brazil with a mission team from my church. My first trip was more a challenge to myself than a calling or religious desire. I just wondered if everything these missionary types said was true. You know how fulfilling it is, how you can see God at work, and how much you’ll enjoy the experience.

That first trip resulted in the post Truly Blessed. That trip opened my eyes to the reality of what I’ve said above. Someone living there who focused only on what they did not have would be hard-pressed to feel thankful. The ones I met and worked with were focused on what they had, not what they might have somewhere else.

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