We travel at Thanksgiving so that free turkey we get from Shoprite every year sits in our freezer until basketball and cheer season is over and we actually have a free Sunday. So, since today is our very own turkey day it is a day to be thankful (word of the day). I am thankful for my family. I am thankful for my faith. I am thankful for my health. I am thankful for my wine. And I am thankful for my very full belly this evening.
My faith is something that I am not very vocal about other than the answer "Oh, I am Catholic" when asked. About every Saturday a lovely lady named Tina stops by to talk to me about the bible. More often that not, I am either walking the dog, at yoga or driving a kid to ballet and my husband gets to listen to Tina read a verse from the bible. She normally also leaves a pamphlet for us to peruse after she has left. Tina has been stopping by now for about 2 years. I am thankful for Tina - not because she is successfully converting me to be a Jehovah but because of her sweet nature and perseverance. Many neighbors question us, I am sure, but this woman is literally pounding the pavement for her faith. That IS why she is out there. And, I am certainly not. I know our new pope says we should be evangelizing our faith, I just don't have it in me. I am very much a "Golden Rule" kind of girl, which I am hoping is enough to get me through those pearly gates, we will see. But back to Tina, she always looks stunning, dressed to the nines. I always comment on how great she looks - keep in mind I am ALWAYS in either sweatpants or pajamas when she stops by every Saturday. And we invite her in the entry way so she doesn't have to stand in the cold. My dog knows her well enough to bark about 3 times, sniff her and then look up at me to pick her up. Tina asks after my children and my puppy. She always asks me a questions about how I feel about a certain topic, for instance - "Heather, tell me do you think that God is telling us to take the bible as man written word or as his word?" I say something like, "Well, that's a good question Tina, I am not really sure this morning, I am only on my first cup of coffee." She says, "Heather, thank you for your honesty." And thens she opens up to a verse and reads it in her soft engaging tone and I normally respond something like this, "Tina thank you for sharing that with me, that was lovely." Then she kindly leaves her pamphlet and goes on her merry way. I give her A LOT of credit, I am sure most people just shut the door in her face. More often than not, I yell as she walks away, "Thanks Tina, keep spreading the good news!" So, yes, I am thankful for Tina. I am just full of thanks today!
Sometimes, I do think I need to focus more on my faith. I send my kids to Catholic school and go to mass regularly, but I rarely go to confession and I know I curse more than single mom out of Southy. Even today, as I was thinking about our turkey dinner coming up I leaned over to Tom during the homily in mass and said, "We have to remember to take the chorizo out of the freezer when we get home."* He leaned over and said, "I love that you are thinking about sausage at mass."
*We make this killer chorizo-cornbread dressing every time we make our turkey dinner. And with a gluten-free cornbread mix and a side of green beans, it was satisfying gluten-free meal!
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