How Many Blessings in a Smoothie?

Thanksgiving was this past weekend (for those of us in Canada) and I wanted to write something about it, but I was busy with family and work and midterms. I’m still doing midterms, but whatever. I surfaced from my reading to make myself a smoothie for lunch, and as I was eating I had an idea. I am thankful for smoothies, and this is how I make them:

1. Banana. My mother has always put a banana in our smoothies. Maybe because they have a lot of potassium? I don’t know why. But bananas are not from here, not from my home. I am thankful for the wide world, and everything in it. I am thankful for the variety of life. I am thankful for the advances that have opened the world for us to explore and enjoy.
2. Mixed berries. Raspberries and strawberries and blackberries and blueberries all go into our smoothie, and these all grow here. I have picked them myself. I am thankful for the bounty of the earth, for the way that God provides for us. I am thankful that I live in a bountiful, beautiful land, because not everyone is so blessed.
3. Yoghurt. So, I wasn’t certain what I was going to say about yoghurt. I’m not really a fan of it outside of smoothies. So, I looked it up, looking for some metaphorical meaning. Turns out yoghurt is really cool. The word yoghurt is from the Turkish. Pliny the Elder wrote about yoghurt. Then there’s the science of milk fermentation, etc. So what? I am thankful for learning, and for the opportunity to learn in fascinating and varied ways. Also, I am thankful for whoever came up with frozen yoghurt, because that is awesome.
4. Orange Juice. It may seem strange, but orange juice, besides being delicious and healthy, reminds me of my family. When I was little, we almost always had orange juice on the table at breakfast, and breakfast is my favourite meal. Most of the time we’re all at home for breakfast, while other meals are touch and go. I certainly remember it at Sunday breakfasts, with the biscuits and the jellies. I am thankful or my family, and the little traditions that we have, and the love that keeps us together.
5. Memories. Before I could make my own, a smoothie was a treat for summer afternoons. Smoothies make me think of the warmth of sunshine, and the free feeling of Sunday afternoons with nothing to do, of dirt on my fingers from planting flowers. Now I am older and I have other memories, of going out for smoothies with friends, of being the smoothie maker for my family when my mum is busy. And I am thankful for all of these things: for my friends who are such great blessings (including the ones I haven’t yet gone for smoothies with), for growing up and learning how to provide, how to cook and how to care for those around me. I am thankful for simple pleasures like sunshine and seasons. I am thankful for a good memory that reminds me how blessed I am.

Of course, I am thankful for a good many other things. I am very blessed. But this simple meal brought back to me that in everything, even the little every day things, we should remember to thank God. There are a lot of things behind my lunch today, and I am glad of all of them.