What is Thanksgiving to me really?

We all pass around the emails of friendship and love and of those we don't want to lose this year. Without the email have you really TOLD them that? Welcome to my Thanksgiving. It will never mean the same to me or my family.

Ten yrs ago, Thanksgiving meant an early morning phone call that I knew was coming but didn't want to face. A call from a heart-wrenched sister, having watched our mom collapse in a heap in the hospital hall as they heard the news that they were too late and Dad was gone. A call that shocked me because I hadn't wanted to believe that the impression I received the day before had come true. Thankful for that impression so that I could be there for my mom and continue in a dazed shock. Thankful that in-laws were actually at my house to be with my kids while I went to the hospital for the day to be with my family. Thankful for a father who lived a long and full life and who was now out of the immense pain he'd been suffering. Thankful I didn't have to go through it alone.

Thankful that there is a grave in Salt Lake that I faithfully took my mother to visit, but that I can't bear to visit anymore. Thankful that my parents know that and that I can feel them with me without the need for a physical monument. Thankful for wonderful neighbors, supportive friends - past, present, and waffling - and for family far and near. Grateful for a warm bed, modern convienences, money to buy them and jobs that bless me with that money. Thankful for home and family, fights and all. Grateful to Christ for his sacrifice for me and what his gospel means in my life and when I let it, the peace it brings. Grateful that I still live in a country that is FREE and that there are those who are still willing to fight for that freedom, bless you.

Weird as it may be.... Grateful I guess to be ME. With all my pity and woe is me's, I would rather be me than any other that I see. Life is hard enough with my own problems, I don't need anyone else's, but I'll glady and gratefully help carry their burden to lighten my own.

6 Quirks

Ok, sorry boo, didn't see this when I was supposed to >_<, better late than never. So, I'm supposed to say 6 things about me that are quirky that people may not know. Interesting....
1. I rock out to opera in my van. I seriously crank up Charlotte Church and sing along and won't get out til the song ends.
2. I'm still afraid at night, but when my kids get up I have to act brave to calm them down while I than sit and stew. ><
3. I am a HORRIBLE arachnaphobic! If spiders are anywhere within 2 ft of me I get the heebie geebies, itchies all over and can't calm down. If I'm eating, I can't finish my food.
4. On cold winter nights, I still sleep with my covers over my head. Sounds good for warmth but read #2. Lol.
5. I disect snickers bars. I nibble all the chocolate off the outside, than eat it layer by layer.
6. I LOVE peanut butter and fresh tomato sandwiches! (w/ salt & pepper) Nothing better except pb & banana =]

DUCK OR EAGLE?
No one can make you serve customers well. That's because great service is a choice.
Harvey Mackay, tells a wonderful story about a cab driver that proved this point.

He was waiting in line for a ride at the airport. When a cab pulled up, the first thing Harvey noticed was that the taxi was polished to a bright shine. Smartly dressed in a white shirt,
black tie, and freshly pressed black slacks, the cab driver jumped out and rounded the car to open the back passenger door for Harvey .

He handed my friend a laminated card and said: 'I'm Wally, your driver. While I'm loading
your bags in the trunk I'd like you to read my mission statement.' Taken aback, Harvey read the card. It said: Wally's Mission Statement: To get my customers to their destination in the quickest, safest and cheapest way possible in a friendly environment.

This blew Harvey away. Especially when he noticed that the inside of the cab matched the outside. Spotlessly clean! As he slid behind the wheel, Wally said, 'Would you like a cup of coffee? I have a thermos of regular and one of decaf.' My friend said jokingly, 'No, I'd prefer a soft drink.'
Wally smiled and said, 'No problem. I have a cooler up front with regular and Diet
Coke, water and orange juice.' Almost stuttering, Harvey said, 'I'll take a Diet Coke.'

Handing him his drink, Wally said, 'If you'd like something to read, I have The Wall Street
Journal, Time, Sports Illustrated and USA Today.' As they were pulling away, Wally handed my friend another laminated card, 'These are the stations I get and the music they play, if you'd like to listen to the radio.' And as if that weren't enough, Wally told Harvey that he had the air conditioning on and asked if the temperature was comfortable for him.

Then he advised Harvey of the best route to his destination for that time of day. He also let him know that he'd be happy to chat and tell him about some of the sights or, if Harvey preferred, to leave him with his own thoughts. 'Tell me, Wally,' my amazed friend asked the driver, 'have you always served customers like this?' Wally smiled into the rear view mirror. 'No, not always. In fact, it's only been in the last two years. My first five years driving, I spent most of my time complaining like all the rest of the cabbies do. Then I heard the personal growth guru, Wayne
Dyer, on the radio one day.

He had just written a book called You'll See It When You BelieveIt . Dyer said that if you get up in the morning expecting to have a bad day, you'll rarely disappoint yourself. He said, 'Stop complaining! Differentiate yourself from your competition. Don 't be a duck. Be an eagle. Ducks quack and complain. Eagles soar above the crowd.''

'That hit me right between the eyes,' said Wally. 'Dyer was really talking about me. I was always quacking and complaining, so I decided to change my attitude and become an eagle. I looked around at the other cabs and their drivers.. The cabs were dirty, the drivers
were unfriendly, and the customers were unhappy. So I decided to make some changes. I put in a few at a time. When my customers responded well, I did more.' 'I take it that has paid off for you,' Harvey said. 'It sure has,' Wally replied. 'My first year as an eagle, I doubled my income from the previous year. This year I'll probably quadruple it. You were lucky to get me today. I don't sit at cabstands anymore. My customers call me for appointments on my cell phone or leave a message on my answering machine. If I can't pick them up myself, I get a reliable cabbie friend to do it and I take a piece of the action.'

Wally was phenomenal. He was running a limo service out of a Yellow Cab. I've probably told that story to more than fifty cab drivers over the years, and only two took the idea and ran with it. Whenever I go to their cities, I give them a call. The rest of the drivers quacked like ducks and told me all the reasons they couldn't do any of what I was suggesting. Wally the Cab Driver made a different choice. He decided to stop quacking like ducks and start soaring like eagles.

How about us?
Smile, and the whole world smiles with you... Peace, Love, and Happiness!