Great Lakes Adventist Academy

Thanksgiving often gets lost in all of the excitement over Christmas.

By the time November roles around, the snow may already be falling, making us long for a cup of hot cocoa (which pairs well with Christmas music).

We want to curl up next to a fire and warm our hearts and souls with cookies and another cup of hot cocoa (and there’s that Christmas Music again).

Even the stores smell like Christmas! Christmas wins again!

But should it? In skipping over Thanksgiving, are we cheating ourselves out of opportunities to focus on our many blessings? This season gives us a chance to express our gratitude to our friends and families, and to God. 

Here at GLAA, we have so much to be thankful for.  I took this opportunity to ask students and staff members to think of something they were truly thankful for. I didn’t want it to be cliche’ – you know, the standard answers like “family, friends, my kids, my job”, basically the everyday things that everybody is thankful for. It’s not bad to be thankful for these things, but for this post, we wanted to dig just a little deeper. So here are some of the answers I received when I asked people around GLAA what they’re thankful for:

Varic-”I’m thankful for Christian Education.”

Stacy-”I’m thankful for the opportunity to go on mission trips.”

Jeanette-”I’m thankful for the privilege of being in this country and to have a home here.” 

Emilio – “I’m thankful for the Bible, I’m thankful we don’t have to go through life without a guide.”

Rudo- “I’m thankful for the people throughout history who made it possible for me to come to school with everyone else. If segregation still existed in schools, I wouldn’t have half of the friends that I have today.”

Mrs. Garcia- “I’m thankful for my community. My church family and my GLAA family. The community is very quick to lend a helping hand whenever someone is in need and I really appreciate that.”

Mrs. Voss- “I’m thankful for my grandma. I was very close to her growing up. She was always so creative and resourceful. The holiday season makes me miss her but at the same time reminds me of how thankful I am for her.”

Aleia- “I’m thankful for my best friend. We went through a rough patch in our friendship that really tore us apart. Now, our friendship has been restored. Having her back makes me so thankful.”

Demaris- “I’m thankful my parents can be in this country. Back in Mexico it’s very dangerous and just walking on the street they have to worry about being shot. Here in the U.S. they don’t have to worry about those things.”

Mrs. Norcross- “Simplicity and peace. I have a quiet place to wake up to in the morning where I can read my Bible and find true peace in God.”

This Thanksgiving, we’ll gather around our tables loaded with Fri-chick and Special K loaves. Maybe the football game will be on in the background (maybe the Lions will even win!)  We’ll say a prayer and contemplate the many blessings we have in our lives – the obvious ones, and the not so obvious ones. Let’s all take advantage of this season of thankfulness instead of fast-forwarding into the next holiday, but don’t worry, Christmas music pairs well with Thanksgiving dinners too!