Infinite Riches

There is a moment, in my future, when the Diva will see that her friends have "more" than does she.  She will notice that they have huge houses, drive expensive cars, wear designer clothes, are involved in so many activities, take huge vacations, and have material items that would not begin to fit in our house!

 

That time is coming, but fortunately, it is not right now. 

 

Right now, she likes our little home.  She cherishes our walks through the woods where we note the changes in the season and witness wildlife and nature in action. 

 

Right now she wants for so little that it is a challenge to find her things to put under the tree or in her stocking.  Her wish list - letter to Santa  was very short and basically said "Dear Santa, I would really like these things.  But you can give all of this to other kids as all I really want is..."

 

One thing.  That was it. 

 

Somewhere along the way I feel like I have done something right.  I feel like I might have found a way to raise her in a way that focuses less on the material items and more on the natural riches that life has to offer. 

 

I like that.  I don't just like it because it is Thanksgiving, which, for me, is about recognizing the things that we have, the world in which we live, and all that we have been given... but because, for the Diva, there is a natural appreciation for life and its treasures. 

 

It is magic when we walk through the colored leaves, and she spots a buck or a few deer walking through the wood.  Or when she observes all the colors that can be found in the snow. 

 

From the time she was little, she has witnessed the cycle of life - Canada geese laying eggs, those eggs hatching, goslings growing into geese, and everyone migrating only to return again the spring. 

 

She has fallen in love with plants, and is, in fact, the reason that I pamper and painstakingly have been nurturing a rose for the past three years.  In kindergarten, she brought home seeds from a commercially produced apple.  She carefully planted the seeds and, to my shock, they grew.  We now  have two, 1 year old apple trees waiting out the winter with the other plants in our house.  (Just a few more of her babies for me to protect and nurture)

 

For her, for right now, being rich is walking hand-in-hand to school, stopping to get a hot drink along the way... it is finding deer tracks and following them to see just where the deer go. 

 

Being rich is legs that run, hair that curls, eyes that see , hands that help and write and draw, and ears that hear the music to which her body dances.   

 

Wealth lies in the ability to laugh, the smell of sauce on her pasta, and a nice glass of milk. 

 

Money can not replace her green chair (which has been hers since she was very little though she allows a cat to sit there when she is not home) or her favorite stuffed dog.  

 

She is happiest with a pad of paper, an implement for drawing, and her imagination...  or a book... or laughing with her dad before eating one of his fabulous meals.  

 

Money does not play much of a role in her life.  It is not money that supplies her with all the love and support and admiration a child can have.  Nor is it money the fires her imagination or stimulates her mind.  

 

For all of these things, I am thankful.  

 

This Thanksgiving, and throughout the year, I am thankful for all the riches that money can't buy... the health and quality of life that my family and friends enjoy, the beauty that surrounds me, friends all over the world, kindness of those near and far, passion and creativity and imagination, and a daughter that continually reminds me that the treasures in life are often those that I can't find in a store.  

 

I feel very rich this Thanksgiving!

 

happy Thanksgiving!