I.

There are many things for which to be thankful

            Amid the shadows of tumbling towers

                        And raging wars in retaliation

                                    For innocence lost

            To be thankful to have survived

                        To live another day.

There are many things for which to be thankful

            Amid the clouds of soaring debt

                        And tumbling economy in its wake

                                    For wages lost

            To be thankful to have one more meal

                        To live another day.

There are many things for which to be thankful

            Amid the fog of lobbying rhetoric

                        And mounting self-interest en masse

                                    For honesty lost

            To be thankful to have truth

                        To live another day.

There are many things for which to be thankful

            Amid the haze of polarizing hatred

                        And escalating prejudice in common

                                    For justice lost

            To be thankful to have love

                        To live another day.

 

II.

Today, as everyday,

            She stretches in front of the rising sun

                        As it cascades across the carpet

            Flooding the room with its warmth and light.

Today, as everyday,

            She sleeps atop the reclining chair

                        As the breeze blows through the window

            Filling the room with its fragrance and chill.

Today, as everyday,

            She prances around the evening kitchen

                        As the can opener whurrs on the counter

            Freeing the turkey pate with its giblets and juices.

Today, as everyday,

            She curls beneath the hooking legs

                        As the human sleeps in the bed

            Feeling the love with its softness and peace.

 

III.

To you, my love

            I give thanks

                        For your arms of strength

                        That wrap me secure

                        And lift me upward.

To you, my love

            I give thanks

                        For your lips of passion

                        That kiss me hard

                        And utter me dreams.

To you, my love

            I give thanks

                        For your hands of comfort

                        That hold me soft

                        And pull me forward.

To you, my love

            I give thanks

                        For your heart of compassion

                        That beats me steady

                        And drives me onward.

To you, my love

            I give thanks

                        For your mind of knowledge

                        That thinks me constant

                        And knows me further.

To you, my love

            I give thanks

                        For your body of grace

                        That feels me beautiful

                        And makes me more.

To you, my love

            I give thanks

                        For your being of love

                        That heals me whole

                        And gives me wings.

To you, my love

            I give thanks.

© 2005 Cheryl A. Hemmerle. All rights reserved.