10 Things To Be Grateful For This Thanksgiving

The season of gratitude is upon us.

Thanksgiving Day is our official national holiday for giving thanks.  We traditionally celebrate it with family get-togethers and feasts of turkey, delicious side dishes and pumpkin pie.

We express our gratitude for the abundance of our lives by overindulging in the goodness of food and enjoying the company of family.

It’s a busy holiday for many people, filled with travel, cooking and socializing with family not often seen.  It’s easy to get caught up in the stress of the holiday and lose sight of the deeper meaning of the Thanksgiving tradition.

Thanksgiving has its roots in the festivals that marked the completion of the harvest season in farming communities.  Most of us no longer live in farming communities and we enjoy a far richer life than many of the farmers of old.

Our lives are more materially comfortable than at any time in history.

Even though times are tougher for many people these days, most people in the America still have plenty to eat and a warm place to sleep.  Many people have homes that are filled with expensive possessions.  Thanksgiving is definitely a day to feel grateful for our material comforts and the possessions that bring us happiness.

In addition to our possessions, there are priceless intangible things that we all possess as U.S. residents and sometimes take for granted.

These 5 things to be grateful for on Thanksgiving as Americans should be at the top of our list.

1. We Have Freedom – Our democratic government guarantees freedom of speech, freedom of religion and the right to pursue happiness as we see fit.  Our nation’s government has set an example that has caused democracy to spread throughout the world.  A few decades ago people feared the spread of communism.  That threat has disappeared as more and more nations seek the freedoms that we already enjoy.
2. We Have Choice – Freedom of choice is one of our most important rights.  We can choose where to live, what career to pursue and what type of lifestyle we want to adopt.  We have the freedom to search for the path that will take us to the realization of our dreams.  People from all over the world come to this country seeking the freedom of choice that we enjoy as a birthright.
3. We Have Tolerance – Our society continues to improve in terms of racial, religious and lifestyle tolerance.  We’ve come a long way from Marin Luther King to President Barack Obama.  There is now widespread recognition that liberty and tolerance are inseparable.  The intolerance that once brought pain to so many is fading into the past.
4. We Have Education – Free education is available to all children, providing the skills to lead a productive life.  Although the quality of schools varies by community, the right of each child in this nation to receive a basic education is protected by law and supported by our society.
5. We Have Opportunity – In many nations, a person’s position in the social order is defined at birth.  We have the opportunity to change our circumstances through education and hard work.  Talent is frequently awarded and even luck can play a part in changing the circumstances of someone’s life.  Opportunity and possibility are more available in this country than in most other places in the world.

In addition to the thankfulness we should feel as citizens of America on Thanksgiving, we can also celebrate our gratitude on a personal level.

According to studies conducted by Todd Kashdan, an associate professor of psychology at George Mason University in Virginia, gratitude is one of the most essential ingredients of a happy life.

Kashdan lists significant relationships, gratitude and the ability to live in the present moment with openness and curiosity as three elements that are essential for finding meaning and happiness in life.

By cultivating a feeling of daily gratitude, you can focus on the good things in your life and downplay the negative.  When it comes to daily gratitude, consider the most basic things that you enjoy as a human being.

In addition to the 5 things listed above to be grateful for as an American, here are 5 things to be grateful for on a daily basis.

1. You are alive. When you are grateful for the gift of life, your life will take on more meaning.  Don’t take a single day of life for granted.  Appreciate the good and bad events of each day that verify that you are alive.
2. You are healthy. Not everyone is blessed with good health.  If you have it, be grateful for it on a daily basis.  Be thankful for the ability to walk on healthy legs, to enjoy food and to take in the world through all your senses.
3. You are connected to life. When you open yourself up to the world with gratitude, you will feel connected to other people and to every living thing.  A feeling of connectedness is one of the best ways to combat loneliness.
4. You have the potential for great generosity. We live in a nation of generous people.  Seek out ways to be more generous towards friends, family and strangers.  Be generous in your expressions of gratitude to people that do things for you.  These simple expressions can lift the mood of the receiver and increase their own feelings of gratitude.
5. There is beauty in the world. Open your eyes to the beauty of the natural world around you.  Even in an urban setting, there is natural beauty to be found in the sky, in trees and plants, and in birds.  Surround yourself with reminders of the beauty of nature and take an active part in preserving the earth.

If daily gratitude is not part of your current mindset, make a resolution this Thanksgiving to make a habit of it.

Feeling daily gratitude may not come naturally and may be something you have to work at.

If you begin by forcing yourself to do it, before long it will become part of your daily thought patterns.  Instead of just being an annual holiday, Thanksgiving will become part of your lifeblood and an integral part of your own pursuit of happiness.

“I have sometimes been wildly, despairingly, acutely miserable … But through it all I still know quite certainly that just to be alive is a grand thing.”
Agatha Christie

**************************************

Get instant updates of new blog posts by
subscribing to TheHappySelf here.