Many years ago when I began to study painting, my instructor talked about learning to see. Being a shy young person, I wouldn’t ask questions—like what in the world did she mean? It was obvious I wasn’t blind—I could already see. I just wanted her to teach me how to apply paint to my canvas in a creative way. I didn’t realize then that one could look without seeing … 🙂 I eventually learned what my instructor meant about seeing, and I’m still learning to see—with an artist eye.

Here’s a sample of what I see every time I leave my home—just down the road …

A hayfield on my way to town—it’s beautiful!

Rolled hay in another field …

Sunflowers growing along a fence.

Cows are a soothing sight …

A neighbors horse enjoying a watermelon snack!

Hilltop farm house under a glorious sky.

And one of my favorites … the Red River.

Stop and smell the roses is an old expression we’ve all heard. And it’s a good thing to think about, just as learning to really see is a good thing to do. It’s easy to get busy and not really see our surroundings, or the people and things in our world that make it a great place to live. Often it’s taken for granted that they’ll always be there.

Not true.

Thanksgiving—a time of pausing to give thanks—is just around the corner. What do you see in your world to give thanks for? Who are the people in your world that mean everything to you? Do you really see them?

I’m thankful that Christ died so that I could live. I’m thankful for my family, and the many friends I count as blessings.

I’m thankful that my old pine tree made it another year, that my car still runs smoothly and… and that…oh, there’s too many to name. You don’t want to wade through all the words it would take to list all I’m thankful for! 🙂

Until next time, may God bless us all with a wonderful, safe and turkey filled thanksgiving day! 

MaryJ 🙂 🙂 🙂

And another day slips away … what did you see this day to be grateful for?