We've all attended Thanksgiving dinners when the host and/or hostess has asked us to list those things for which we are most thankful. I always groan inside when that happens, dreading the thought of looking foolish or overly sentimental. I mist up easily. I cry at good commercials. Hallmark ads usually get to me. Ditto the ads for adopting pets. So, being asked to list my gratitude items makes me fear blubbering out loud in front of someone's Aunt Sadie or Grandpa Howard.

My life, to the outside viewer, hasn't been easy. Mostly, my own family is dead. (An article about grief and the holidays is coming soon. Watch this space.) Yet, somehow my life is also jam-packed with joys, and graced with the incredible luck of loving friends. When I get serious about a gratitude list, it can go on and on like an aria-driven diva overwhelmed with the sound of her own voice.

Yet what is Thanksgiving but a chance to do just that? It gives us a chance to embarrass ourselves with joy. Many of you have had a rough year. The economy is slamming all of us. One dollar has to stretch further than pantyhose on a rhino. But when Thanksgiving Day comes, I am proposing that we do two good things..and that we "preview" them here.

::::First Good Thing::::
~~~Count Your Blessings~~~

Look back over the past year, good times and rough times. Find what allowed you to enjoy the good times, and think what got you through the rough ones. Then, say thank you. Say it to whomever you wish. Tell God, if you are so inclined. Or the Universe. Or the spirits of life. Or your family. Or your friends. Or any combination. But speak it. Send the energy of thankfulness, of acknowledged blessings, out into the universe.

It can be hard to do this. I especially resist it when times are tough. But that is exactly when I need to do it most. I have written about gratitude lists before, because I think they are essential to keeping us spiritually grounded, in that they demand that we focus on the healthy elements of our lives. And, I believe that the combined energy of everyone's gratitude can change the world.

Thanksgiving dinner is a dandy time to have people focus on those things. Maybe you ask folks to speak one thing for which they are thankful. Or you provide a pencil and paper at each plate so they can write their list and take it home with them. As Willie Nelson said, “When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around.”

::::Second Good Thing::::
~~~Wish for next year's blessings for you and for the world~~~

The Universe is a big place. Or, as persons of faith would say, God accepts really big ideas. However you come at it, wishing for something wonderful as a blessing puts a sign outside your spiritual door saying that you are ready to accept it into your life. What would you like to be thankful for next year? Imagine next year's Thanksgiving and see yourself being asked "And so, it's your turn. What are YOU thankful for?"

So, to prepare, I'd like you to think about one new blessing you would like in your life as an individual, and one blessing you would like to be able to celebrate for the world. Then, make a wish or say a prayer for both.

Plan to be thankful.

Let's share out here first to practice and to get to know each other better. I'll chime in once y'all get it going. Gratitude pouring down from so many of us would be a beautiful thing. I'd love to especially invite lurkers, those of you who read but have yet to comment, to join in the responses here and share with us:

1. A blessing in your life that you are thankful for right now.
2. A blessing you would like to have by next year.
3. A wish for the world for next year.

Oh, and thank you :-)

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Problem Solvin' Mom posts her gratitude list.

MimiMeltdown describes her idea of getting all her Christmas gifts made and wrapped by Thanksgiving as a source of what will be great thanksgiving.

...this year, I will actually feel thankful for the blessings in my life on Thanksgiving instead of feeling like I only have 947 hours and 27 minutes of shopping time left. And the month of December, it will be mostly stress free. I'll have time to spend with family and friends, knowing that all of my gifts are completed and wrapped and BONUS: they are straight from my heart.

Trixie at Fam Home Life shares her blessings and says, "Sometimes its easy to become overly focused on what we don't have and what's not right with our lives. "

Mata H is very thankful that you read her columns. She is CE for Religion & Spirituality, and blogs at Time's Fool