Gratitude and Thanks this Thanksgiving ...

It's Thanksgiving in Canada this weekend - a perfect time to reflect upon all for which we're grateful and thankful.

This year, I'm grateful for everyone and every situation that supported me, sustained me, made me laugh out loud, affected me enough to inspire blog posts and journal entries, kept me grounded, reminded me I had wings, awed me to silence and made my heart sing. And I am lucky enough to have an abundance of all of this in my life on an ongoing basis.

I'm also thankful for everyone and every situation that presented as struggle, challenge, hurt, disrespect, confusion, unkindness and strife - for it is here that I learned my greatest lessons, found my greatest strengths, practiced my most desirable traits and qualities, and helped me find my confidence and courage.

While I'm not always happy about it, the Universe always responds to my desires for greater peace, understanding, harmony, health and love in ways other than I'd prefer to receive them. These feelings don't magically manifest within me, allowing me to wake up one morning fully enlightened. That's how I'd like it to happen.

No, instead, someone or some situation will show up - inspiring me to feel the exact opposite of the state I most desire to feel ... thus allowing me, if I so choose, to approach the person or circumstance with my desired state as the end goal -- or to react to it as I generally have, with anger, frustration, withdrawal, etc.

Changing the way I see what is before me - as opportunities to reach my desired way of being - has helped me immensely in life, and is a path I still walk with courage every day.

And for this reason - my challenges, adversities and speedbumps are very high on my list of things for which I'm most thankful. For without them in my life, I would never have seen the underlying perfection of the Universe ... and the wondrous capacity for enlightened living wthin my Self.

We are all 'perfect' you know ~ because whatever we're working through is exactly where we need to be on this ongoing journey of creating ourselves in the grandest version of the greatest vision we're capable of imagining.

This Thanksgivng - I am grateful for you all ... many blessings ...