“I’m Thankful”

This morning, both of our girls walked into our room around 7 AM. They came in to snuggle; it was a chilly morning, and it was great to all lay together in bed. They then went downstairs to draw placemats for everyone who will be coming to us for Thanksgiving.

As they left the bed, I thought how thankful I am for my family, my life, my friends, and all that I do both personally and professionally.

Thankfulness can be a funny thing. It only “occurs” to us at certain times, such as during a holiday, or when something happens that brings it to the forefront (i.e. someone does something very powerful for us, or something bad happens and people flock to our aid). And that is kind of sad, because we should technically be thankful for everything, all the time.

Both professionally and personally, we need to do a better job of being thankful and expressing our gratitude (and I’m certainly included in this). Here are three easy ways we can all do this:

1. Say “thanks.” It isn’t that hard to share a “thank you” from time-to-time. In fact, it is actually quite easy. There is much for us to be gracious for, and a simple “thank you” can sometimes be just enough to let people know they mean something to us.

2. Go out of your way. The “holiday season” should never be the only time we go out of the way for those we know (or those we don’t). Helping someone carry their groceries, picking up something that someone else dropped, reaching something on a high shelf for someone who is shorter than you. . . these are all examples of small “Go Out Of Your Way” processes that don’t take long, but mean so much.

3. Reflect. Sometimes it isn’t that we aren’t thankful, but rather that we haven’t taken the time to realize we are. What does that mean? Simply that we have to reflect, and take the time to do so, in order to realize how good we have it.

There are many other ways to be thankful, and we have to realize that people express gratitude in different ways. The key, of course, is to express it, in any, and every way, possible.

Happy Thanksgiving!