November hasn’t always been a kind month in my adult life. Don’t get me wrong, I love Thanksgiving, Black Friday shopping with my daughters, and my mother’s birthday, but personally, there’s probably more job trauma wrapped up in this month than any other.
Throughout my career, November is the month I’m most likely to find myself abruptly without a job, just in time for the holidays. There are few things more demoralizing than to be at the head of the family, working the budget, seeing that the numbers are all trending the wrong way, and knowing that Christmas is coming up. Oh, and November is when my grandfather died.
No wonder my general anxiety level ramps up a few notches when the calendar page flips from October to November. As Dr. John Deloney says, your body remembers trauma, and I’ve got a lot of it in November.
By now you might be thinking “This is a really weird way to start a post titled ‘Gratitude’, that comes the day before Thanksgiving.” You’re probably correct, but bear with me for a few more moments. All that was to set the stage for my main point, which that I do, in fact, have a lot to be grateful for.
Through every one of those unemployed periods, the kids always had a good Christmas. We never went hungry, and we always had a roof over our heads. Sometimes we ended up the recipients of some charity food from our local church. One year, our church helped us out from their fund that they kept for exactly such purposes.
Every one of those unemployment periods ended too, usually with a better job than I had before. If not better in pay, then better in a healthier, happier environment. True, Adventure Girl put some big dents in the Chevy courtesy of a driver who ran a red light and sideswiped her, but she’s okay. Looking at the damage, if she’d been through the intersection a second later, or been in the other lane, things could have been so much worse.
So yeah, I’m grateful. As we sit down with family for a Thanksgiving meal tomorrow, I’m grateful that there’s food on the table. I’m grateful that hard seasons eventually have an end (that’s why they’re called seasons, because a season is never permanent). I’m grateful for one more Thanksgiving and Christmas with Not-So Mini-Me before he heads off on his own adventures. I’m grateful that we’ll be together as a family, and that through it all, My Lovely and Gracious Bride and I have faced all our hard times and good times together. I’m grateful for the help and prayers that we’ve received over the years.
To everyone reading this, I wish you all a Blessed Thanksgiving, and hope that you’ll take a few moments to reflect on your own blessings.