Happy Autumn Days!

It is a gorgeous Autumn day as I sit here to write this morning. Leaves on my neighbor’s ash tree turned a bright shade of yellow this week. In bright sunlight this morning, the yellow leaves are sparkling like jewels as they twist, turn, and spiral thru the air on brisk Autumn breezes.

And I am feeling grateful for not only the beautiful display of leaves but also for another spectacular Autumn day.

From my open window, I can hear a bird whose call I do not recognize, signaling migration is well underway. At this time of year, he may be the rear guard for his flock. Or perhaps simply late. I hope he catches up.

When not busy chasing acorns, squirrels are busy raiding my neighbor’s bird feeder for sunflower seeds. The delightful aroma of baking pumpkin muffins wafts down the hallway from another neighbor’s kitchen.

The smells, sights, and sounds of Autumn, my most favorite time of year. And I am grateful. All of them small, insignificant things, perhaps. But when you are mindful and consciously aware of the little blessings and living a life of gratitude, your awareness and world are open to so much more.

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And do you know what else I am grateful for?

I am grateful for the day and period in which I was born. I am grateful for the gift of being born, to have been blessed with this amazing Earth Journey to begin with, and grateful for the times, if you will. I am thankful for my childhood.

I am thankful for parks and picnics. For backyard sandboxes and swing sets. For my bicycles thru the years, and being able to pack a lunch, ride anywhere I chose, and be out all day without a thought of being in danger at any time. I am grateful for the three channel black and white television set which provided all the family entertainment we needed, allowing for more creative play and reading time, thru which my imagination became boundless.

I am thankful for many visits to the amazing St. Louis Zoo, for Marlin Perkins’ “Wild Kingdom” show on television, and for trips to Grant’s Farm to see and interact with so many animals.

I am thankful for camping out in the backyard, cooking foil packs, hot dogs, and marshmallows on a campfire in summer, and for building snow forts and igloos in winter snows.

I am grateful for my music teacher, John Lee, who not only taught me how to play the guitar, but then hired me for my first actual job at age fourteen, teaching music and working in the music store all thru my high school and college years.

And I owe a debt of gratitude to the Boy Scouts and the adult leaders who mentored me, helping me to overcome my shyness, build confidence, and eventually become an Eagle Scout and leader myself. And thru it all, to have developed a lifelong interest and passion for wildlife, nature, conservation, and the environment.

I am thankful for my mother who, having the time, could prepare fresh, home-cooked meals every night, not laden with preservatives and other dangerous chemicals. And I am grateful for my father, who was always there to teach, support, and guide me. I am thankful for the polio vaccine after having watched some of my former childhood friends become afflicted with the disease.

I am forever grateful to my fourth-grade teacher, Mrs. Drew, who noticed and then actively encouraged my early writing abilities.

I am grateful for my formative years, each lesson learned, for every victory and defeat, and for every challenge, because they all served together to form the person I am today.

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What things are you thankful for today? It is easy to have our attention focused on an issue or a difficulty that we are dealing with at a particular moment in time. But when feeling overwhelmed or defeated, it can help to turn our attention and focus on the many, many blessings we have and have had throughout our lives. So many things that we never give thought to, perhaps. But should.

Fashion trends come and go. Musical artists and styles come and go. What is out comes back in again, and what is in goes back out. Everything cycles as predictably as the tides.

If you cannot find anything to be thankful for right now, I encourage you to take a few minutes for a nostalgic look back. You may discover that you have much, much more to be thankful for than you realized. And are never without hope that if going thru a difficult time today, it will be better again tomorrow.

We are living in such an incredible time in history. Are we faced with challenges and confronted with threats both at home and around the world? You betcha! No denying that. But would you be willing to trade places with any peasant dealing with the plague, rampaging hordes, starvation, persecution, or ongoing wars during the middle ages? I think not. But no doubt, they would trade with you in an instant.

Rather than dwelling on our perceived problems and that which we do not have, we need to be grateful, appreciating everything which we do have, and to always live with an attitude of gratitude. It is the way.

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Thanks always for visiting!

As we approach the Thanksgiving holiday in the U.S., I encourage everyone to take a few minutes each day to focus on finding things to be grateful for, no matter how small, rather than dwelling on problems of the day.

Free your mind of stress,fears, and worries, and count all the blessings you have in your life.

Find your inner peace to celebrate a true Thanksgiving this year.

Thanks — Giving

Or — Giving Thanks. When we really look at the words, it helps to reveal the true meaning, doesn’t it?

Best Wishes and Blessings! — Jim (and Red!)🤠 🐻 🍂 🍁 🍂 🧡

(Banner Image created via Bing Image Creator AI)

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In case you missed it, I invite you to catch up on our weekly Monday Morning series — Living A Life of Gratitude, Mental Health Benefits, Physical Health Benefits, and It’s A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood, leading up to the Thanksgiving Holiday.

You may also enjoy — “Happy October! Welcome Glorious Autumn!”, “Take A Walk To A Park for Healthy Exercise & Fun!”, and “Sharing An Autumn Delight — Baked Apple Cider Doughnuts.”

Feeling stressed about current events? Check out → “When All Hope Seems Lost — Thoughts on the Election. We are the Resistance.” 

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If you enjoyed this piece, you may also like — “Mitakuye Oyasin — We Are All Related,” and “Walking A Mile In Another’s Moccasins; What Tracks Will We Leave Behind?”

We welcome recent visitors! Please check out “Welcome To My Writing Pages!” and “About the Blog, Jim, & Little Red Bear” to find out what we are all about. Sign up today to follow and receive notifications for every new post and feature!

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In a world where we can be anything, please choose to be Kind!

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When not out fishing or gathering honey, Little Red Bear and Cinnamon Charlie love to color in their spare time!

If you have little ones around or simply enjoy coloring yourself for relaxation and fun, be sure to check out “Little Red Bear’s “Happy Autumn Season!” Coloring Pages.”

Download and color as many as you like, free of charge, because that’s just how we roll here!

Happy Coloring!

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“If you keep searching for everything beautiful in the world, you will eventually become it.” — Tyler Kent White (Author and Poet)

 

“The real gift of gratitude is that the more grateful you are, the more present you become.” — Robert Holden (Author)

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Meet Little Red Bear & His Friends — “Once Upon A Time In A Very Special Woods”

“Hope begins in the dark, the stubborn hope that if you
just show up and try to do the right thing, the dawn will come. You wait and watch and work: you don’t give up.” — Anne Lamott

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Because together, we can do so much! 

Thank You for visiting! Best Wishes and God Bless! — Jim (and Red!)

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“When you arise in the morning, give thanks for the food and for the joy of living. If you see no reason for giving thanks, the fault lies only in yourself.” — Tecumseh (Shawnee Chief and Warrior)

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