How to give thanks

It's been at least two years since I first ran into the Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving Address in Robin Wall Kimmerer's wonderful book, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants (Minneapolis, Minnesota: Milkweed Editions 2013, ISBN978-1-57131-356-0). The Thanksgiving Address is a wonderful expression of gratitude for all created beings in our world, a deep wisdom that is frequently voiced by Indigenous communities. 

The Thanksgiving Address is made up of the Words Before All Else -- which means that nothing should be said to start a day or a meeting of people or any kind of community event until we "join our minds as one" and give thanks for all that we have received. This little video explains it quite beautifully.

I've been thinking a lot about gratitude lately, and -- no surprise -- after a period of having forgotten about it, I find that the Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving Address has reappeared in my life all over the place in just the last few days. Just in the nick of time, as we head into the biggest season of consumption. I know better than to think it's just coincidence. 

If you have not heard of the Thanksgiving Address yet, here's a link to a beautiful website that shares it just a small piece at a time, with gorgeous art to accompany the words. I invite you to savour the Words Before All Else at whatever part of the day in which you find yourself right now, and realize the many gifts we have received, and that really, most of us are fortunate enough that we don't need to go out and buy more stuff.

All the gifts we have freely received are enough -- and they are no coincidence, either.