Thank you for the spinach

I happen to like spinach - as long as it's in a salad.

I don't, however, like it cooked.

Years ago, my then husband, Ray Parker, gave this example in a sermon about being thankful.  It was especially meaningful to him because he loved his Mammaw's fried chicken and his mother's German Chocolate Cake.

"Suppose you sat down to a nice dinner," he said, "and there on the table was fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy and you could see a chocolate cake on a nearby counter."

Your mouth would be watering...you could hardly wait to get through with the chicken and potatoes and get to that cake".

. . . |and then you saw it.  And you knew what your mother was going to say.

You had to eat what was in the center of the table before you could dive into that cake".

And what was in the center? You guessed it - a bowl of spinach.

That story always reminded me of my brother, Lester, who had heard my daddy lamenting the fact that we (our family was visiting our South Carolina friends for Thanksgiving) were probably having turkey soup for supper.  Lester was four years old, and when we got to the table, he had the honor of asking the blessing.  And his words:

"Thank you for the turkey 'toup."

The point of these remembrances is that even when we have so many  things for which to be grateful, we also need to be thankful for those less than pleasant things....even those things that are downright awful - loss of job (or home like those in West Florida, the Carolinas, and California); catastrophic illness (or loss of a dear one because of that); or even the loss of a relationship - we can be thankful.

Sarah Young said it so well in November 22's Jesus Calling "Thankfulness is not some sort of magic formula; it is the language of Love which enables you to communicate intimately with God. A thankful mindset does not entail a denial of reality with its plethora of problems."

I suppose the most difficult bowl of spinach that ever was set before me was when  Rich Suhey suddenly died 20 years ago.  For two years following his death, I was caught up in dealing with the financial responsibilities that he left me with, the sadness of the loss of the dreams that we had shared and the inexplicable pain of being a 51-year-old widow who had been married only 8 months.

Even today all these years later, I can be met with an unexpected feeling of great sadness at my loss.

However, in those same twenty years, I have been blessed with a terrific daughter in law, seven dear grandchildren, finished my college degree and had the privilege of caring for my parents (which sometimes has been a little like that Turkey 'toup Lester was thankful for).  I have also met and formed incredible friendships, and I have loved the many opportunities of service that I have enjoyed.

Spinach is high in iron.  It enriches one's blood.

It has been said that "pain is good for you."  And how about this little quote:  "If it doesn't kill us, it makes us stronger."

I'm still breathing; I must be stronger!

And that's the way I'm looking at life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, this Black Friday, 2018.

May your life be filled with enough Sunshine 

to make you appreciated the Shadows