Thanks is for Giving

I have a lot to be grateful for. Some obvious (Annie, my family, Starbucks coffee...) and some a little further outside the box. My thankfulness list grows longer and more dramatic each year. And not just for what I have, or even what I don't have, but even what I may have one day. Each year that passes, the clarity of the road ahead and the vision for the future becomes more and more a part of my the things I hold dear.

"The hardest arithmetic to master is that which enables us to count our blessings." - Eric Hoffer

The giving of thanks and the expression of that gratitude is not just for this one day, but, in my summation, a way of living and a lifestyle to be perfected. I have, and I will receive some masses emails and some random texts today, perhaps even a tweet or two, sharing someone's happiness about the day of thanks and perhaps my place in their life. I will appreciate them, but if today is the only day that I know or I share my gratitude for and with someone else, it is a shallow showing and not as heartfelt as it should be.

"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them." - John F. Kennedy

To live a life of gratitude is a beautiful thing. To know that each and every breath is another moment to be thankful for. To look at each laugh, each hug, each new friend as another reason to smile and share some gratitude; there isn't much better. It is a sobering thing to count your blessings and how fortunate we are. And with that count, with that understanding of the scope of all we have to be thankful for, I have come to realize that there is some much more that I can be doing with all that I have been given.

"As we celebrate Thanksgiving, we should reflect on the full meaning of this day as we enjoy the fellowship that is so much a part of the holiday festivities. Searching our hearts, we should ask what we can do as individuals to demonstrate our gratitude to God for all He has done. Such reflection can only add to the significance of this precious day of remembrance." - Ronald Reagan