Give Thanks and Express your Thankfulness this Thanksgiving!
Thanksgiving is a favorite Holiday for many Americans. I still give Christmas the edge. Mainly, we celebrate Christmas more as a season than a single day. However, it is easy to understand why Thanksgiving is the favorite Holiday for so many people. Traditions, good comfort food, gathering together, and usually a little extra down time, make for a great day. The Thanksgiving meal can become a bit demanding on your host, but hopefully, it's less taxing than weeks of shopping.
It isn't a stretch to say that many people can not give you a historically accurate description of the Holiday. That may not be as important as an accurate understanding of the true spirit behind the day.There are countless ways to "give thanks" and express your "thankfulness." In today's demanding world, it can be easy to experience the Holiday only for what it gives us. The day off, the food, an excuse to sit around doing nothing, all can sound rather appealing. But Thanksgiving is only one day a year.
If quantified that it would be considered a statistically insignificant amount of time in an entire year. So why not make the most of this one day? Increase the value of your time. I know that I have many things to be thankful for and many people to thank for that (the demand for thanks is high). But sincere thanks can often go unsaid due to pressures on time or complacency (the supply is low). Econ 101 tells us that high demand and low supply equals high cost. But our commodity is thanks. So, high demand and low supply mean it holds greater value. Ok, a silly economic and somewhat superficial explanation, but I hope you get the point. When was the last time you sincerely thanked someone to the extent that you actually felt good doing it? A genuine thanks for a small task or, to the right person, for doing seemingly nothing can carry great value.
When you greet someone and say "Happy Thanksgiving," take it a step further. If not immediately, at some moment in the day, the day of Thanks, find a reason to thank that person sincerely. Search your memory or watch their actions during the day and make a conscious effort to THANK them for something they have done. The intention behind the action is the spirit of the Holiday. It's a gift you don't have to buy that you both will enjoy. Today it's fashionable to call it gratitude (I guess). People have engaged in the practice of gratitude for thousands of years – it's not new. The repeated effort of identifying reasons, including people, to feel thankful has many benefits. And Thanksgiving Day is the perfect time to give it a try. If you like what you feel and continue with your practice, maybe Thanksgiving can become a season.
Thanks to all of you that spend your valuable time reading my ramblings. I'm most often writing for myself. The exercise attempts to clear and reinforce my thoughts and actions. Your responses through the past year are sincerely appreciated.
Happy Thanksgiving (I really mean it)!
Brian Pitell
BPG Planning