Thanksgiving & Appreciating Abundance
Thanksgiving will be here in less than a week. For many of us, this means spending time with family and friends and eating lots of great food.
For some people, this can also be a time of stress. We may think there’s not enough time, there are so many things to do before the meal actually happens, we don’t have enough energy, sometimes family can be challenging, or any other number of things we may worry about.
If you’re not a worrier and simply take pleasure in this time of year, kudos to you. Stay present and keep enjoying all that life has to offer.
If you sometimes forget the good aspects of your life, perhaps Thanksgiving can be a reminder of all the abundance that surrounds you.
Thanksgiving is a time of specific foods and often overeating, which is certainly its own form of abundance.
Focussing inward and taking a few minutes to expand beyond the simplicity of food and eating can help us to remember how amazing our lives really are, even when we’re not “feeling it”.
There will always be ups and downs in just about every aspect of our lives. Our moods can fluctuate dramatically, as can our health, our finances, etc.
Many would argue that we need “low” periods to really appreciate the “highs”. I agree with this to some extent but would also further argue that despite our lows, there is always something good that we can find in almost any situation.
If we focus on the bad, we get stuck in it and seem to experience more of it. The same is very much true when we focus on the good and the abundance in our lives.
You may be in a bad mood, but you are still very healthy. If you can engage in an activity to take your mind off your bad mood, you’ll soon feel much better.
You may be experiencing poor health but you are still financially stable. You have the resources available to get help in improving your health and wellness.
Your family may create stress for you, but they care about you and love you in ways that only they can. Some people have no family at all and wish that they did.
Pets are such a wonderful reflection of how to live life simply and in the present moment. We are not that simple despite our best efforts at presence and mindfulness.
Our brains are powerful tools that can help us to value and appreciate all that surrounds us, or they can create chaos and disarray in our lives.
Sometimes both are true, though I’d like to encourage you to focus on the former and have a very happy thanksgiving.
Action Steps:
Let yourself think about the abundance in your own life and what that means to you.
Do something nice for yourself and / or someone else this Thanksgiving and just feel good about it!
