My Thanksgiving Gratitude List

My late sister, Priscilla (standing) and I, on our grandfather Tucker's tire swing.

Circa 1963 (ages 16 & 9).

My daughter @ age 14

My two other daughters, fall 2004

I read Meg Cox' blog post about Thanksgiving and at the end she had what she calls a "gratitude list".
I liked the idea of it.  I became the surviving member of my family-of-origin after my mother's death in 2003.  The experience of losing my last 2 family members in such close succession made for some interesting contemplation.  I quit watching 24-hour news channels, spent more time in my garden in quiet contemplation.  I think of my mother each and every day as I walk down the long hallway into my studio, and thank her for giving me back the gift of time to make art.

So, after reading Meg's list, I decided to begin my own:

The love of a good, kind man

Three loving, healthy, beautiful daughters

My own good health

An amazing, loving, family-in-law

A home

A happy family (and this includes my dog)

Wonderful, supportive friendships

Food security

A good education and the ability to continue learning

Books

Time to read them

A studio and supplies to make art, and the time and ability to create it

My garden

The capacity for great joy

Curiosity

Humor

An appreciation for the natural world

Travel

Clean, wonderful linen sheets

Art that satisfies and intrigues

Kindnesses from strangers

The insight not to take any of it for granted

Of course there is so much more.  This is the all-encompassing version of it.

So, dear reader, what is on your own gratitude list?  Please let me hear from you.
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Thankful.

Here we are, at the beginning of another holiday season.  For those of us who have lost loved ones, it is often bittersweet.  I want to tell you how thankful I am to have been given the opportunity to meet to many of you, to share in workshops and meet at festivals, to work with you at events for the Alliance for American Quilts, to laugh and be silly with you.
My cherished memories of family carry me through the sadness of missing those that are gone.
I am so grateful for my own family.  I'm pretty sure I married the coolest guy on the planet.
And, it goes without saying that I have the most awesome daughters.  What's a mother to say?!
My family-in-law is the best a woman could wish for.
My friends.  There are no words.

I'm thankful for my health.

I'm thankful that I have the gift of time.
Everything else that I have been able to do flows from these things.

My late parents

 

my beloved late sister

My grandmother, the seamstress and quilt maker

My uncle Ralph, whom I lost this year.

He walked me down the aisle in 1982.

Who ARE these kids?!

Thankfully, I've been married to this guy for 29 years as of 11/27.

A father-in-law with a sense of humor that never disappoints!

 THE most loving mother-in-law a woman could ask for...

and three daughters that mean everything to me.

Same girls, a few years later.....

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.