You know the game. Every Thanksgiving, we gather around the table and try to think of something we’re grateful for. It’s tradition! And it’s a fun tradition … during those years when the game comes easy. Maybe you got that new promotion you wanted. Maybe a new baby was born into the family. Maybe your favorite team won the championship.
Other years, the game is harder. Maybe someone you love had health problems. Maybe you didn’t get that promotion. Maybe your car broke down once too often, or your basement flooded just after you put in the new carpet.
But I have a surefire way to make “This year, I’m thankful for …” easy every year.
Just look around the table.
Look at all the faces of all the people who have come to enjoy the day with you. Look at them and remember:
Every holiday card, birthday card, and get-well card they’ve ever written
Every picture, every crayon-smudged doodle, every homemade refrigerator magnet they ever asked you to hang up, or hung up for you
Every handprint, footprint, or name signed in wet cement
Every “See you later, alligator,” every “in a while, crocodile”
Every basketball game in the driveway, every hand of hearts ever dealt
Every bad dream ever comforted, every nightmare chased away
Every trip ever taken, even if they were just to your backyard
Every sloppy wet kiss, every desperate hug
Every pat on the back, every hand on your shoulder, every encouraging nudge
Every silent moment shared, every word unspoken that you understood anyway
Every hot summer’s popsicle, every cold winter’s cocoa
Every star ever counted, every cloud ever named
Every “I love you” ever whispered
Every “I love you, too,” whispered back
Scientists say that mankind needs only food, water, oxygen, and shelter to survive. But sometimes as we continue on this long, strange trek of ours, all we really want is a little company to share the ride with.
So this Thanksgiving, as you prepare to play the game, just look around the table. All the best things, all the richest things—
They’re already there.
And as for the “This year, I’m thankful for” game, well—
You’ve already won.
On behalf of Tina, Kara and myself, we wish you and yours a wonderful Thanksgiving.