I Don’t Wish You A Happy Thanksgiving

Sometimes it’s hard to feel thankful. We’re all guilty of it at some point. Maybe we feel down because we can’t afford the awesome Christmas gifts we wanted to buy our loved ones. Or feel sorry for ourselves because we didn’t get out on that vacation we’d hoped for—or the promotion we’d applied for. Maybe we won’t be able to afford that house—or that van—for a couple more years. Maybe we’re not where we’d hoped we’d be in life by this point. But perhaps that’s exactly when we need to choose thankfulness.

This year’s been tough for my family, and a lot of my friends. We’ve lost a lot of people close to us. And in the wake of those losses, there’s nothing any of us can really say to make things any better. So many things in life are out of our hands. But one thing that isn’t is whether or not we choose to remain open hearted and grateful. It might be the most difficult decision we make in life. And we’ll probably have to make it over and over, day after day.

This year, I’m not going to wish you all a happy Thanksgiving, because happiness can be fleeting. Instead, I’m going to wish you a thankful Thanksgiving. Life is messy and bittersweet, but maybe if we choose gratitude, we’ll find a little bit of joy—which seems to stick around even when happiness is hard to find.