I am thankful today for the sharp outline of naked tree branches against the backdrop of a grey November sky. I am thankful for the sun even when I haven’t seen it for 48 hours. I am thankful for the good healthy mud even when it’s tracked in my house and onto my cream carpet by boys and dogs. I am thankful for weather that is cool enough that a wool sweater feels good but my nostrils don’t freeze the second I step out the door. I am thankful for the browns, yellows and pale greens that color my lawn right now. I am thankful for the yellow pears from our tree that my mother-in-law graciously came over and canned for me while I took a nap (I’m so thankful for her too! but this was a nature oriented post ;-)) I’m thankful for the space that surrounds me. I feel so blessed to live out in the country, to not have neighbors a stone’s throw away or right down the hall. I am thankful my children have room to run and that I can send them outside before dinner to run around the house five times and calm. down. (not that it worked). I am thankful for the smell of the cattle yards, as Grandpa Gary said, “It’s the smell the money.” I am thankful for the world God created and the senses to enjoy it.