Happy Thanksgiving!  I am so grateful to be alive in the here and now. I have so much gratitude for all who are a part of my life. I hope you enjoy this day. I am including something I read to my classes this morning. It really resonates with me. Perhaps you will love it as much as I do and will share it with your family and friends today.  (And for those of you who get this blog post in your inbox, you may want to see the blog post directly on my website, too, so you can see the photos I have included. For some reason, the photos no longer show up on the email form.)

This Thanksgiving Prayer comes from the Seneca Nation and is at least 500 years old.

Before the prayer is said, those gathered first greet each other by saying: “Nyah Weh Skenno” which literally translates to  “thank you for being alive in the here and now and not adding to the confusion of the world.”

We give thanks for our lives.

We give thanks for Our Mother Earth Who Supports Our Feet.

We give thanks for Plants and Berries.

We give thanks for Sacred Water.

We give thanks for Our Tall Standing Brothers, the Trees.

We give thanks for the Animal and Bird Nations.

We give thanks for the Three Sisters: Corn, Beans and Squash.

We give thanks for the Wind that strengthens our breath, clears our minds, and carries the voices of the ancient ones all over the earth so that, even in the desert, the smallest whisper reminds us we are never alone.

We give thanks for our Elder Brother, the Sun.

We give thanks for the Night Circle of Light, Grandmother Moon.

We give thanks for the Star Nation. They help us find our way back home at night.

We give thanks for the one who gives us our lives, the Great Mystery.

Closing: 

            May our grief be lifted,

            Our hearts be open,

            Our stomach be full,

            Our bones be braced,

            And our will be calmed.

 It is spoken, it is beautiful.