Each month your Temple conducts a Board Meeting in order to properly align goals. I’m happy to report that meetings usually only run an hour long. Any member may come to our meetings. I am proud of the good and open decorum we have been able to foster within the walls of conducting the Temple affairs. As in life, family and work it is within communities of those that truly respect each other, speak respectfully and empathetically listen to other views is when advancement is nurtured.
This last board meeting opened with a prayer of thankfulness. It’s fitting as we merge our national, secular and religious identities that we think of Thanksgiving as it is fast approaching. For most it’s a way to enjoy favorite foods. You might be fortunate to be with friends and family you rarely visit. With the football overload and heavy cream on pumpkin pie it is understood why one can forget the original purpose. Its originated as a harvest festival (somewhat like Sukkot). When President Lincoln proclaimed Thanksgiving a federal holiday, he invoked praise “to our beneficent Father”.
Here we find a connection between belief in a higher power with that of gratefulness for that which we have. Why do you think this is? And, what is present in your life that you consciously give your personal gratitude for? Like most, you may find the fourth Thursday in November does not necessarily invoke you to think of all we have. But I invite you to try to become a bit more mindful of life, love and the freedom present.
Ask others around the “turkey-table” to name those gifts they are thankful for. Act as a good example and be first to list those gratitude’s you want to share. Take time to realize what we have in this open society. Even in the presence of loss from what you may have once possessed, such as perfect health – your body is still a wonder, your mind a gift, your life today can be a shared blessing to someone else.
Robert Becker
President