There is Always Something to Be Thankful For

Thanksgiving is coming quickly. It is time for us to be thankful for all of the blessings and gifts we have been given. I know that it is often hard to find things to be thankful for, especially if we are faced with hardships. For all of those who are having difficulty in finding something to be thankful for this Thanksgiving, I want to give you a few ideas.

Can you get out of bed each morning, breathe in fresh air, smell the morning coffee, feel the warmth of the sun, see someone smile? Do you have a roof over your head, even if it is not the greatest roof there is? Do you have food to eat when you are hungry? Water to drink and bathe in? Do you have a family? These are all things that we take for granted that we should be thankful for, not only on Thanksgiving, but each day of our lives.

I have met hardships in my life, as most people do. Even in the hardest of times, I was thankful for the little things. I would tell myself, this may be going differently than I want it to, and I may be struggling, but I still have the ability to get up each morning and see my children smile. I still have family and friends to talk to when I need an ear. I have a brain and if I use it right, I will figure out how to solve the problem. Most importantly, I have my faith in God that I will be taken care of.

We all face hardships in life. How we deal with them is the key to surviving them. If we continually look for things to be thankful for rather than look at all that goes wrong, life isn't as rough as it seems.

For example, due to the current state of our economy, many people are losing their jobs and homes. Yes, this is a hardship, but one that can be faced and fixed with faith and determination. Be thankful that you still have your family. Be thankful you still have the ability to work. Be thankful that there are other jobs in this country. Be thankful to simply be alive. Things will work out easier if you stop to smell the roses, so to speak.

Even the parents that lose a child still have something to be thankful for. They should be thankful that they still have each other if nothing else. If they have other children, they should be thankful that they do, and that those children are alive and well. I am not saying that you shouldn't grieve. We should all grieve our hardships and loses. Grieve, but find the little things to be thankful for and move forward in life.

I feel that if there is no other time of year that we recognize the things in our life, big and small that we should be thankful for, Thanksgiving is the time. All too often, we become so caught up in our own sorrows and hard times, we forget to look for the good things. Sometimes, we even forget there are any good things. The simplest things in life to be the most thankful for are those things which we were given at birth, learn along the way, or have access to. Things that cost little or no money at all.