Whether you are grateful to a Higher Power, or to Lady Luck or even just to yourself for all of your own hard work, being grateful means being in the moment and realizing that you have achieved something worth having. And what, after all, is this giving of thanks? It is a time to stop and reflect, to appreciate, to recognize; in other words to be cognizant of the moment in time in which you find yourself.
Thanksgiving was designated an official holiday comparatively recently, but if you are a student of religion or history, you know that every culture in every age has had a day when it was appropriate to “give thanks”. It isn’t always, (or even usually) associated with turkey and/or getting stuffed. But it is always associated with realizing our many gifts, and being grateful.
The end of 2011 is drawing near, and it seems as if it just began. I guess that’s how you can tell how old you are. Remember when you were a kid, and time seemed to drag on until your birthday came around, or until it was an important holiday or a vacation from school? As we get older and busier with all the things we are called on to do, time seems to slip away, and yet, each day is still 24 hours, and each week is still seven days. Why does time sometimes pass at breakneck speed, and sometimes seem to drag until you just want to scream? Why does it sometimes seem as if we are holding our breath for long periods of time in anticipation of something, and sometimes as if we have to wait another second to exhale in relief, that we will die. Perhaps it is the desired or undesired occasion at the end of the tunnel of time that makes it seem to rush at us or hold back, that changes our perception of the passage of time, and yet, we have the same three meals each day, or the same routine that we follow.
Many of the religions of which I am aware set aside time for reflection and thought, attention to our better selves, and study every week, and while many people spend all or part of that day in a house of worship or study, any or all of those things could as well be done in a park or on a walk or at the beach, or listening to your favorite piece of inspiring music.
To take the time to fully appreciate our place in the universe, to reflect on the gift of life, and to think of how we might improve ourselves and our world in some way is not something that should be limited to a once-a-year occasion. It takes some discipline to hop off the every day merry-go-round of chores, obligations, work and routines to say “today I will take the time to reflect, and to appreciate, and today I will make an effort to spend more time smiling than complaining, and today I will cherish the warmth I feel toward my family and friends; today I will value each moment given me to enjoy.”
So whatever your religious bent happens to be, or if you do not subscribe to any religion at all, I wish you the happiness and good cheer that this season heaps upon us, and I urge you to accept the gift of gratitude. It will enhance your life in every way.
