This is a periodic blog feature I call “grace notes.” It occasionally captures my jottings of incidental gratitude. My hope is that this practice will make me (and you?) more aware of the constant flow of amazing good we are perpetually steeped in, which we are surrounded by all the time. It is here only asking to be noticed and amplified.

So now I am furthering my ongoing goal of appreciating such a continuous, overflowing abundance of random good. I’ve taken photographs of some of them with my iPhone, which you can see in this post.

So let’s start this gratitude list with:

• My sweet husband! What a boon he is to my life: silly, earnest, super supportive of me, with a growth mindset and purpose driven.
• That both of our daughters will be home for Thanksgiving and we’ve heard from our son as well. That our oldest has been working from here for the last two weeks after coming east for a conference. That our younger daughter talks to me on the phone everyday.
• For extended family and all sorts of friends.
• For our dear home, with our tree shadows on it, strewn with leaves in the yard, our solar panels, the sunsets from the office, and the lovely light in the dining room in the morning.
• For hiking at Huntington State Park regularly.
• For food made by others. Shown below: Harvest Salad with Salmon, Mediterranean Shrimp with Harissa, Thai Pineapple Calamari, Shrimp Poboy.
• For a wonderful conference with fellow practitioners.
• For good healings in my spiritual practice.
• For my four book groups.
• For visiting guests.
• For an upcoming surprise adventure with our oldest daughter (her Christmas present to me).
• For all the folks who ordered Polly Castor Art Calendars.
• For my art journals and the discoveries I make in them. For the new tome I’ve begun to fill, and for the new concertina sketchbook I am working on.
• For art shows being done for the year.
• For being part of our local clergy association.
• That I see abstraction everywhere.
• For the dried persimmons, our niece grew, peeled, dried, and mailed to us; they were amazingly delicious.
• For my jazzy little red car at 99,400 miles and still as good as new.
• For a friend’s honor of having a 40 year retrospective show of her artwork.
• For the gorgeous leaf display this fall, some of which is shown below, out the window when I wake up, and in the neighborhood.
• For my husband’s amazing garden, and in particular his glorious dahlias.
• For the crop of green tomatoes he made Chow Chow out of that so many people like. For the amazing raspberry jam that he made from our homegrown raspberries too.
• For the lemon that is growing on our lemon tree!
• For more books and records donated.
• For a friend storing some boxes in her basement for a while.
• For healthy new babies surrounded by love.
• That my husband’s podcast (The Bible Speaks to You) is reaching 155 countries.
• For sycamore trees, wild yeast sourdough bread, for tissue paper collage, for hot pink pastels, Posca pens, mittens, carousels, wilderness, the Milky Way, candles, indoor plumbing, warm feet, business cards, polar fleece, ear buds, audio books, brakes, ginger, clean drinking water, our incredible pianist at church, easels, hiking boots, cell phones, trains, planes, smooth stones, computers, vacuums, leaf blowers, energy, thistles, fresh produce, hot showers, the power of abstinence, faucets, slippers, light bulbs, hugs, texture, opportunities, meaningful work, book recommendations, the right to vote, sunglasses, the postal service, gum drops, cranberry stilton, grace, directness, safety, health, generosity, strength, versatility, continuity, delight, integrity, kindness, and hope.
• For each of you blog readers: I am grateful for you everyday. Thank you for your time, your attention, your curiosity and interest. Without you this blog would not exist.

Add some of your grace notes in the comments!