Abundance

I cannot remember a time when we had a small crowd for Thanksgiving dinner.
This year however, marked such a day.

No out of town guests.
Extended family scheduled visits in the other directions.
Our total number was 8 for the day.

As usual. I carefully planned what to prepare,
when to prepare it, and how to present it.

A month of planning, two days of cooking.
It was going to be as perfect as it could be
with 20 missing family members.

We ordered a turkey 10 pounds lighter
and scaled down the size of remaining entree's.

Then, the winds changed.
Two unexpected phone calls made me a very happy hostess.
1] My brother in law and his family had to cancel their travel plans &
2] My husbands cousin Sip, needed a party to crash.

My 8 quickly became 15!

Fortunately, I am an over-planner,
and a recipient of a tender mercy.
Our 15 pound pre-ordered turkey
was 20 pounds when the butcher handed it over.

Needless to say…
We had an abundance of food
and a house full of loved ones.
Just the way we like it!

Quotable

"Generally speaking, the most miserable people I know
are those who are obsessed with themselves;
the happiest people I know
are those who lose themselves in the service of others...
By and large,
I have come to see that if we complain about life,
it is because we are thinking only of ourselves."
— Gordon B. Hinckley

Taking a chance

Taking a chance is so easy to think about.
The application of this, is something quite different.
So many situations put us in a position were we should apply this ideal.
Many times, for me, hiding behind my fears and insecurities is so much easier.

Missionary work, for example.
In my faith, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints,
we believe that every member is a missionary,
that we all have a responsibility to open our mouths and share what we believe.
Me, my worries of saying the wrong thing, stop me from sharing my thoughts and beliefs.
It is one of my greatest weaknesses, but this weakness has been made stronger
as I have taken a chance in other aspects of my life.

I wonder where I would be today
if I had not taken a chance and gone out with a young man
that seemed so much my opposite.
If I had not taken a chance and seen him again.
After all doesn’t everyone deserve a 2nd date?
Firsts seem to be so wrapped up in insecurities and first, and likely wrong, impressions
If I hadn’t taken a chance and married that man.
By taking that chance, 25 years later, I find that we are the best of friends and
we have so much more in common than I ever believed…we grew that way.
He has made me stronger and braver.
He secures me and anchors me.

I can’t even imagine how empty my life would be
if I had not taken a chance when we had our first child.
If I had not taken a chance and had another.
I have gained so much by taking those chances.
I have learned to love unconditionally, and most of all
I have learned that I am loved unconditionally by my Savior
as He has blessed me and sustained me as a mother.
My weaknesses have been  tested and strengthened,
my talents have been nourished.
My life became full.

I have learned, that when we take a chance
and do what our Heavenly Father has asked us to do,
(sometimes that is the most difficult and seemingly wrong thing
to do, simply because it may not be what WE want to do)
we are blessed beyond our greatest dreams.

We simply must have FAITH…. and take the chance.