Treasure the Treasures of this Season

In these days leading up to Thanksgiving and the official kickoff of the holiday season, I offer you three challenges:

1. Be fully present

Be fully present in all of all the simple, significant and in-between moments spent with friends and loved ones – like the few minutes of fun I savored with a sweet and smart young friend during our joint travels earlier this year.

2. Offer grace and kindness

Offer more patience and grace to those whose grief may be sharper and deeper during the holidays, when their loved one’s absence is all the more real. I’ll be spending Thanksgiving with some who are in this space, and I’m still missing my big brother, who passed away 11 months ago, five days before Christmas. It is the memories we hold and the stories we are welcomed to share about them that will carry us through.

3. Be intentional

Be intentional about leaving everyone you encounter better than you found them. Make those memories and record them. Light a candle for the cherished family and friends who are no longer physically with you.

Move with love and gratitude

And trust that love and light will always win. Give it, be ready to receive it, and keep saying Thank You along the way.