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As Thanksgiving approaches, I’ve noticed that many people are having a very hard time with finding things that they are grateful for.
Political and cultural divisiveness, COVID-19, and a variety of other issues have understandably dampened many people’s sense of gratitude. Henry David Thoreau, one of our great American philosophers, once suggested that all of us ought to give thanks at least once per day for that fact that we were born. Thoreau admitted that he himself regularly engaged in this practice.
I’m sure that we have all have heard people say that they wish that they had never been born. Usually, most people don’t really mean it when they say it, and typically utter it in response to some current frustration or setback. I am reminded of the character George Bailey in one of my favorite movies “It’s a Wonderful Life.” George asks his Guardian Angel, Clarence, to show him what the world would be like if he had never been born.
George quickly realizes how many people he has touched very deeply throughout his lifetime and how wonderful his life really was. George quickly realizes the error of his ways and begs Clarence to let him live again, which Clarence happily does.
While this story may seem rather far- fetched and overly sentimental, I believe there is a great lesson to be learned from it. The lesson involves the importance of gratitude, not only at Thanksgiving, but always. Melanie Beattie wisely said “Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, and confusion into clarity.
It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and greater wisdom for tomorrow.” We as Americans still have a lot to be grateful for. Despite our many problems, we are still the greatest nation in the world and the envy of most other countries. The things that most of us take for granted like clean water and an abundant food supply are considered luxuries in many parts of the world. This is not to say that there are some very serious challenges that we need to face, but facing challenges is what this country has been built on.
The pilgrims came to this country with next to nothing. They came short on food into a land of seemingly endless forests full of wild animals and often hostile natives. Yet, despite all of their hardships, they took time to give thanks. H.U. Westermayer said “
The Pilgrims made seven times more graves than huts. No Americans have been more impoverished than these, who nevertheless, set aside a day of thanksgiving.
The Pilgrims were hearty and faithful people, and that Pilgrim spirit still exists today, although many of the more pessimistic among us believe that this spirit is dead.
Our great nation was not built on people who were faint of heart, and it will not be rebuilt on them. We are all descendants of the men and women that built this country. We too are being called to be hearty, faith- filled people to overcome the many challenges that confront us today. So on Thanksgiving, let us emulate and honor our forebears by counting our blessings and keeping the faith.
Let us be forever grateful that America was made “one nation under God” by strong, faithful people, and can and will be made so again!
Dr. Angelini is a licensed psychologist and a business and personal coach. He has been in practice for over 30 years. He specializes in assisting individuals in finding and sustaining careers that are rewarding, lifeenhancing, and in keeping with their personal and spiritual values. He can be reached by email at rayangel58@ gmail. com or you may visit his website at https://drrayangelini. com
Political and cultural divisiveness, COVID-19, and a variety of other issues have understandably dampenedmany people’s sense of gratitude.