Thanksgiving Meditation

We pause from our busy lives today to give thanks. I am thankful for family and friends, life and love, freedom and opportunity, security and peace, beauty and goodness, colorful sunrises and soaring mountaintops, food on the table and a roof over my head. But let us also recognize today that with gratitude and privilege comes responsibility, for many are without food today, many are living on the street, many are unemployed, many live in war and persecution, many are lonely, many are ill, many are hurting, much is damaged. So we give thanks today for the blessings of our lives and the opportunity that we have to be instruments of peace and transformation. Where there is darkness, may we shed light; where there is loneliness, joy; where there is despair, healing. Today we walk humbly with much gratitude, seeking justice, loving kindness, and celebrating the many joys of our lives.