An Abundance of Gratitude

The weather here in Wisconsin is glorious this week. People wonder why we live in this godforsaken part of the country and our answers usually range from "we love the change of seasons" to "the summers here are wonderful."

It's funny how a change in the temperature by only a few degrees in the right direction can give you a proper attitude adjustment. I have gone from wanting to climb back into bed every day and throwing the covers over my head to waking up before the alarm, throwing the covers aside and jumping out of bed every morning. 

The grass is green, the trees are blooming and leafing out, the flowers are full of all the colors of the rainbow, and the birds are singing from sun up to sun down. Even the people I meet--at the store, at church, at work, in the park--are in a better mood. 

Spring seems to rejuvenate us. It brings my neighbors out of their houses so we can once again get reacquainted. Last weekend I had a neighbor-day talking with my neighbors while they worked on their yards and sat on their patios relaxing in the warm sunshine. My dogs had a great time visiting with everyone and received lots of pats and kisses. 

Everywhere I look I find myself so moved by the beauty of God's earth that I am overflowing with gratitude. It seems to well up inside me until it can no longer be contained, and I realize in that moment that without the winter we couldn't have our beautiful springs and summers.

Thank you, Lord, for the green grass beneath our bare feet, for lilacs and flowering crabapple trees, for trees bursting with young leaves, for flowers in the ground and in hanging baskets, for herbs and the promise of a garden bounty, for the smell of fresh cut grass, for warm sunshine on our faces, for thunderstorms and raindrops, for the chorus of bird songs outside our windows, and for feet that are warm for the first time in almost eight months. Amen!!