Blessings

There's nothing quite like removing yourself from your normal daily activities and taking a broad look at your life to remind you of all the blessings and tender mercies you've been taking for granted. Such is our experience this past month.
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We are having a great adventure as senior missionaries in the California Anaheim Mission. This  Thanksgiving, we feel blessed to be serving with President and Sister Golden, two senior couples from the mission office, and some of the finest young elders and sister missionaries in the world. The young elders and sisters give us such hope for the future. By and large, they know their Savior, Jesus Christ, they know how to work, and they know how to serve others. They try to make the world a better place. Some of the sweetest memories we have of our other missions are the times we spent with the young elders and sisters (especially our wonderful sister missionaries in London) and watching them blossom and grow into competent, loving, contributing young people who have now become competent, loving, contributing husbands, wives, mothers, fathers and friends.

As we celebrated Thanksgiving Thursday with a few of the missionaries, each one of us at the table expressed gratitude for our many, varied blessings. So much of what we enjoy, we often take for granted. Hearing others express appreciation was a welcome reminder.

This week, we have been remembering what we are most grateful for...

• Our daughters, sons-in-law, and each grandchild. We consider all of them our greatest blessings - and we sure miss them!   

• Our good health. We never take it for granted.
• Encouraging notes and words from good friends at home and abroad. (And a huge thanks to our ward members - and ministering sisters - at home who have been so kind to remember us. That's a new experience for us!!)

Our gratitude wall

Our ward has already sent us the most wonderful Christmas banner
with personal greetings! How cool is that?!

• An inspiring day-long Zone Conference where young missionaries taught and motivated us and trainers from Salt Lake explained how to improve our lives through goal planning & scheduling.

Zone Conference instruction

Sister Golden's presentation at Zone Conference

• Our firm knowledge and witness that there is a God and we have a Savior, His Son, Jesus Christ, who knows how to comfort us in trials and lift us out of the habits/mistakes that hold us back and keep us from being all that they know we can be.
• Freedom - and all those who have fought for it
• A home to live in - or at this moment, a snug little 3rd floor apartment
• Palm trees outside our bedroom window 

• The sun and the sea!'

• Running water, food to eat, and clothing
• The internet - we've been without it more than we've had it for the past 3 weeks and we are keenly aware of  how much our world now depends on it - especially living away from home
• Life itself
• Love.  American author, Willa Cather, once said, "Where there is great love, there are miracles."
• I'm grateful for daily miracles.

   -- Pat --