Aside from the elaborate spectacle of food at the dining room table, Thanksgiving is a day to give thanks for what’s truly important in life (and if you don’t celebrate Thanksgiving, giving thanks certainly still applies!). In this day and age, it’s often easy to get side tracked on what used to be a simple question. What are you grateful for in your life? Take a moment to reflect on your day, the past week, month, and year and think about what has given you motivation, hope, and positive perspectives. Write down your honest answers, and know that this is what you you should be grateful for.
The flat screen TVs, laptops, iPods and iPads, Blackberries, and other electronic gadgets--that fill up good portions of our present-day existence--have taken away from life’s true importance. I shall call them human-interaction-detracting devices. Although it may be easier for older generations to accomplish this goal as they may use less and less of these distractors, let Thanksgiving be a reminder to give thanks for your life’s true blessings. Family, friends, great conversations, smiles, laughter, great health, and nourishing (real!) food for our bodies.
When I was volunteering in Trinidad this summer, the camp coordinators started each training session off right. Each session began hand-in-hand (kumbaya-style!) with the camp counselors sharing what they were grateful for. Depending on how your family and/or friends begin your Thanksgiving meal, follow the blessing/prayer with each person at the table saying why they give thanks. This is the true meaning of holiday.
