I’ve been to many Thanksgiving dinners, some I hosted and some I came through the front door carrying pumpkin pies and sweet potato souffle. I’ve written many Thanksgiving feature articles and used elaborate words of thankfulness for family, health, financial stability, and shelter. I’ve utter “thank you” more times than I am able to count in one sitting; but I’ve learned over the years, gratitude isn’t really about being thankful.
We are thankful when we open an elegantly wrapped gift and find something we’ve desired – a new pair of boots or the latest technology gadget. We are thankful when the doctor’s words aren’t the ones we had worried and paced the floor about the night before. We are thankful when our son graduates from college or our daughter receives a medal of good citizenship. A job promotion, a new car, an outfit for Friday night’s party, or a bowl of Brewster s ice cream shared with a close friend are reasons to be thankful.
But gratitude comes in a different package.
It arrives in the middle of the night in the form of a cold wash cloth and kind words when we are sick. It peaks over the side of the road with help when our car won’t take us home. Gratitude shows itself when our checking account says zero and someone buys our groceries. Gratitude is about surviving the worst thing we can imagine and realizing not only are we still standing, but we are good.
Gratitude comes from a place far deeper within ourselves than thankfulness. It is knowing what could have been; what used to be; what was and no longer is. Its cherishing the time we had with the loved ones who are no longer with us. Its relishing the comfort we did not have before. Its savoring the warmth when we know what its like without it.
Gratitude is reaching the point of knowing good and bad flows in and out of all our lives; nothing we have is ours to keep; people do not last forever; and what is today will never be again.
Gratitude is the backdoor guest who cleans the kitchen when Thanksgiving dinner is over and puts away the leftovers while others are watching the ballgame because our feet are just too tired to stand any longer.
And while I will still be thankful for all my blessings, as I am every Thanksgiving; this year, my table is set with gratitude – remembering where I’ve been; enjoying those I love; and experiencing the moment I am in.
