The Definition of Thanks

GRATITUDE: be grateful; thank; give thanks, render thanks, return thanks, offer thanks, tender thanks; acknowledge, requite, not look a gift horse in the mouth; never forget, overflow with gratitude; thank one's stars, bless one's stars; fall on one's knees.
It's all there, it's all true and right. Too bad it's today or maybe even the last few days or this past week that we tend to linger on the things that we are truly grateful for. It used to be that Thanksgiving was about being thankful for the pilgrims and the bounty shared with, exchanged with the Native Americans. Well, the reality of what really was changed all that. We white settlers came barging in on our fancy ship and bestowed disease and pestilence upon the Native Americans who now have to survive on there income from casinos. Now Thanksgiving is more about our immediate gratitude. What we are thankful for in our lives. Things that we should take notice of and thank God for everyday but life gets in the way and we don't. For whatever reason, we don't. I have noticed though, as I get older and perhaps wiser, I am grateful more often during different parts of the day than I used to be. A wise person once told me "you don't have to do it, you get to do it. Whether it be go to work, go to the dentist, go get your taxes done. You get to do those things. That means you have a job, hopefully dental insurance or money to pay the dentist from your job and taxes to pay because you have a job. You don't have to take your child to school, you get to take your child to school. See? It's all in how you look at it or how you say it. So, you don't have that lovely, dreamy fairytale of pilgrims and indians dining together happily sharing food not diseases. BUT, you get the contentment of knowing that you don't HAVE to live your life, you GET to live your life. So take the gratitude and run with it, don't wait for that day in November to reflect, try to take the time every day.