Give Thanks
The message of Thanksgiving is simple - to give thanks. The hard part is knowing what that means in our topsy-turvy, 24/7 world where we are bombarded with crisis after crisis. Regardless, I have to admit Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. I love the cooking, the food, the table, and the traditions. To me, the shopping is just a necessary evil that makes me appreciate the actual celebration all that much more. Mostly though, I love the notion of a whole holiday where the main purpose is to express gratitude.
Growing up in Massachusetts, the Pilgrims were an integral part of my childhood. Who knows how the actual first Thanksgiving really played out? What is important to me is the fact that what has survived is the notion that amidst the suffering, the toil, and the uncertainty of what the future would bring, time was taken out to be grateful and to say thanks. The Pilgrims had gotten through the arduous trip across the ocean and after a year they were making progress in their new world. Gratitude allowed them to stay the course and be willing to face their continued hardships.
I decided to find out what gratitude actually means and it turns out that the word gratitude is derived form the Latin word gratia, which means grace, graciousness, or gratefulness. In fact, it is likely to be best described as a trifecta of all three.
An acknowledgement of the goodness in our lives, no matter how difficult, usually results in recognizing that the sources of that goodness (at least partially) live outside of ourselves. Each day when I get up, I grab my phone and am barraged with the news - much of it troubling, from natural disasters to man made tragedies. Yet looking around my bedroom, I am filled with wonder that I am alive and able to face the day. Whatever trials it brings, I strive to meet them with equanimity, with a desire to help where and how I can, and without being devastated by the harsh realities of life. It is not that things roll off me easily (trust me, they don't); it's that gratitude allows me to refocus and stay engaged in the world instead of hiding under my covers waiting for Armageddon to occur!
As we love saying in our Miracle Collectors presentations being grateful and acting generously helps us connect to something larger than ourselves - whether it is other people, nature, or a higher power. This Thanksgiving I am feeling grateful for all three. Meanwhile, my goal with Thanksgiving Day now in the rear view window is to maintain this feeling of gratitude as a constant in my life. As Hindu Saint Rama Krishna tells us, "The winds of grace are blowing all the time, all we have to do is put up our sails." I pray that I will have the courage to keep my sails up throughout the coming year and keep gratitude as a constant companion. (Joan)