Within the intricate planning, advertising overload, bundling of cash and plastic, and self defense training that comes with ‘merica’s newest favorite holiday, lies a day which once meant something different to some of us. Without paying homage to the ritual which occurs at the end of (or now the evening of) Thanksgiving, here are a few things to at least think about prior to mindlessly skipping over one of the most important holidays, to become a part of the madness of Black Friday.
Taking a few hours, minutes, even seconds to be “thankful” isn’t that hard. It’s remarkably easier than getting your achilles rammed by a barbaric, sleep-deprived woman with a shopping cart. To be thankful means simply, to be glad that something has happened, or hasn’t happened, or that someone or something, anything, exists in your personal realm or reality. Our current world moves so quickly beyond our control that it becomes difficult or tedious to simply stop and take time to realize how much we appreciate what we have, regardless of how good or bad we think we have it.
There isn’t anyone out there who doesn’t have something to be thankful for. Regardless of where you’re from, who you are, what you do, or why you do it, there is someone or something in your world which makes your life better just because they or it exists.
Why do we feel so good when we make someone else feel good? Because it’s that human to human connection which lights something inside of us, making the world around us seem that much better. You can only control what you can do moving forward, but you can always allow yourself to grow based on being grateful for what you have had, or done, up to this moment in your life. What better time to start, than Thanksgiving? In a time of choosing what “gifts” to purchase, take a minute to recognize that the internal, personal recognition or feeling which resonates inside of you from giving or receiving thanks is a gift in itself, which costs nothing.
In a time of consumption, perhaps take a different mentality entering into this Thanksgiving. Maybe instead of thinking that a new GPS or 93 inch “SMART” TV will show someone how much you care, take some time to show them how much they really mean to you. Who would we be without all the people we love, work with, talk to, lean on, etc? Everyone around you this upcoming Thanksgiving is in your world for a reason, and although we may not always know why, just take some time to think about how breathtaking it could feel to have them know, and feel, exactly how thankful you are to have them.
