Thankful

While Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday, the state of thankfulness might not resonate in your heart and actions because of the current difficulties and hardships you are experiencing.  However, thankfulness and gratitude are not a denial of past pain, but an acknowledgment of the good things in our lives. It is the hope and steadfast belief that current difficulties will be used towards good in the overall story of our lives.

Grateful

The late Henri Nouwen, who after being an acclaimed professor and speaker at Yale and Harvard, moved to live and serve amongst those with severe disabilities said, “To be grateful for the good things that happen in our lives is easy, but to be grateful for all of our lives–the good as well as the bad, the moments of joy as well as the moments of sorrow, the successes as well as the failures, the rewards as well as the rejections– that requires hard work. Still, we are only truly grateful people when we can say thank you to all that has brought us to the present moment.” Nouwen reminds us that in every situation, in tragedy and joy, we have the opportunity to express gratitude. Not only on Thanksgiving,  but throughout the year.

Action

This Thanksgiving season take a few moments to express gratitude in your words and actions to those whom you love.  It can be done in simple ways such as a note in a lunch box for your children, being fully engaged and listening to your friend share their heart, or saying “I love you and I’m thankful for you” to important people in your life.  Gratitude will not only benefit those who are the recipients, but the act of expressing gratitude will also recalibrate our focus on what is truly important this holiday season.

“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.”John Kennedy