A Card, A Note, A Gift from Grandma

I have a stack of Thanksgiving cards sitting on the kitchen counter, waiting for me to sit down and get them ready to mail.
I used to think Thanksgiving cards were a ploy by the card companies to get us to spend money, but one day I realized that, really, they are an opportunity to tell my kids and grandkids how thankful I am to have them in my life.
We always make a point of telling them that when they come to share Thanksgiving dinner with us, but sometimes not all of them can be here. And a card is something a child can tuck under a pillow or into a box of keepsakes; it's there to remind him that he's loved when we're not there. Sometimes all of us experience a time of loneliness, a time when silence seems to overcome our sense of belonging somewhere.
A card with a hand-written note that says “I love you and thank God for you” is a gift that speaks into the silence.
So, I'll make myself a cup of tea, and get those cards signed and ready to mail, and while I do that, I'll be thinking about each one of those precious people, thanking God for them.