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Thanksgiving:
Holiday or Practice

There are a lot of things about Thanksgiving that I enjoy. Pumpkin pie is right up there near the top of the list. When the weather is holding like it is this year, we can really enjoy the beauty of this season outside amongst the leaves. We can hear the honking geese preparing for their journey south. We can enjoy the crisp cool air while being cozy and warm in our sweaters and jackets. Thanksgiving always seems to be our last hoorah before bracing for the winter months that lie in waiting. It’s our chance to delight in the moment before the worries of tomorrow pile up in our mental inbox.

I wonder what it would be like if we treated Thanksgiving as a daily practice instead of a holiday. (No, I’m not suggesting we indulge in pie everyday, although . . . no, definitely not.) I wonder if it would make a difference to the worries and anxieties we carry around with us, if we simply added a moment of gratitude into our day. Being thankful for the small things that delight us in any given day tends to shift our focus away from our worries, even just for a little while. A mindful moment in the present can be a healing break from the worries, either past or in the future, that we can’t do anything about.

A grateful heart creates the space to value our connections with each other, and to see the beauty of our surroundings at any time of year. Perhaps when you pause to give thanks this weekend you will be inspired to let your gratitude spill out into a daily practice. Eckhart Tolle once said, “Acknowledging the good that you already have in your life is the foundation for all abundance.”

Happy Thanksgiving.
Peace and joy,
Nancy