4 GREAT REASONS TO BE THANKFUL RIGHT NOW

4 GREAT REASONS TO BE THANKFUL RIGHT NOW

On the eve of Thanksgiving, my mind searches for the right reasons to be thankful.  "They're there..." I tell myself but the eloquence of their existence escapes me and I struggle to find just the right words to share at tomorrow's dinner where, friends and family will gather to eat, watch football and clarify the very reasons to be thankful so in a rebellious stance against tradition, I will give my four reasons I am thankful with no forethought, planning or consideration to grammatical perfection.

1.  I'm Alive

Yeah, it's pretty basic but as far as building blocks of gratitude I must say being alive is the most important.  I think it goes without saying that without the benefit of actually living the discussion about gratitude and its subsequent search becomes moot.  It goes without saying that being alive is one of the most underrated things on anyone's gratitude list but just watch this guy who was struck by lightning in the video below:

Sometimes, just thinking about the alternative (theological discussions aside) being alive is a really great thing to be thankful.  With this life, I now have an opportunity to explore what I am thankful for in more specifics as well as giving me pause to think about all those people I am thankful for that have passed on and don't have the opportunity to do the same so life in of itself is a pretty good one.

2. The Time to Type This

In your case, it's the time it takes to read this but think about how much free time we have in the year 2015.  Yes, it seems like we're busier but isn't that mostly because the forty-minutes of websurfing we did during our lunch break while playing Clash of Clans on our iPad just made our lunch break seem shorter...  Studies say the average American (with children) have 4.09 hours of free time a day.  Obviously, people without children have more.    When this is coupled with the fact that Americans average 8.03 hours of sleep a night (they certainly didn't get this stat from my house) the picture of our actual day seems even rosier...  But if you're looking for even more free time then check out this article about SIX THINGS THAT MAKE US FEEL PRODUCTIVE BUT AREN'T.  After you read this article of course....


3. The Internet

Think about it:  You have the entire world at your fingertips.  Right now you can watch the mating patterns of Big Cats, check the folk dances in Kathmandu or just watch dancing cats in of itself.  For all the complaints about what the Internet has done to in person communication its upsides definitely outweigh them...


4. Tomorrow is Thanksgiving

Okay, that's a cheat but it's true.  Tomorrow is a great day that is native to our country.  A day to give thanks, think of others in a way we normally don't do in the course of busy lives, show generosity with a kind word, act or invitation for dinner, and be grateful for all those around us while enjoying a meal surrounded by those we love, like and tolerate.  It's a day with no religious connotations to separate and its message can be lived each and every day.... Give Thanks.   That's what I'm thankful for right now...