This season of thankfulness—this time of Thanksgiving—calls us to pause and reflect. Yesterday, we talked about being thankful to God and our Savior. Today, we turn our hearts toward two people who deserve our deepest gratitude: our parents. Eight letters. THANK YOU. Words that don’t even begin to capture what we owe them, but words we need to say more often.

The Sacrifices We Never Saw

Our parents made sacrifices we’ll never fully know. The dreams they put on hold. The sleep they lost. The financial struggles they hid from us so we could feel secure. The arguments they had behind closed doors about how to stretch one more paycheck to cover our needs. They went without so we could have. They worked extra hours, took jobs they didn’t love, and pushed through exhaustion—all to provide for us. Remember the times they showed up, even when they were dead on their feet? The games they played when they would have rather rested? The enthusiasm they mustered for our interests and dreams, even if they didn’t fully understand them? That was love in action. That was the daily sacrifice of parenthood.

The Leadership We Didn’t Recognize

Our parents were our first leaders. They set the rules, enforced the consequences, and bore the weight of molding us into responsible humans. It wasn’t always pretty—there were fights, misunderstandings, and power struggles as we tested boundaries and they tried to hold the line. But they were preparing us for life. They were teaching us about respect, integrity, hard work, and consequences. They were instilling the values that would guide our decisions long after we left their daily influence. Even when we rolled our eyes, even when we thought they were out of touch, they were leading. They were doing their best with the tools they had, trying to shape us into adults they could be proud of.

The Love We Couldn’t Comprehend

We couldn’t understand the depth of a parent’s love then. How could we? We hadn’t experienced that fierce protective instinct, that consuming desire to shield another human from harm, that bone-deep knowledge that you would lay down your life for your child. It’s a love beyond logic. A love that bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. It’s the love that sits up all night with a sick child, that paces the floor when a teenager misses curfew, that keeps vigil when a grown child faces a crisis. It’s the love that doesn’t give up, even when we push away. Even when we’re difficult, rebellious, ungrateful. Even when we take them for granted or forget to call. They love us on our worst days. They love us through our mistakes. They love us not because of what we do, but because of who we are to them: their children.

This Season of Thanksgiving

As we gather around tables this Thanksgiving season, let’s not take our parents for granted. Whether they’re sitting across from us or we’re remembering them in our hearts, let’s be intentional about our gratitude. Call them. Thank them. Be specific. Tell them you see their sacrifices now, even if you didn’t then. Tell them you appreciate their leadership, their provision, their love. Tell them what they mean to you. Don’t assume they know. Don’t wait for the perfect moment. Don’t let another day pass without expressing what’s in your heart. Because parents need to hear it. They need to know their sacrifices mattered. They need to know their love made a difference. They need to know they’re appreciated.

	**THANK YOU**.

Two words. Eight letters. Not nearly enough to repay what they’ve given us, but a start.For the sacrifices. For the leadership. For the provision. For the shelter. For the food. For the endless, boundless, never-giving-up love.

Thank you, Mom. Thank you, Dad.

For everything.