I don’t know about you, but I’m having a hard time believing we’ve already made it to November. It seems like we were just complaining about the Mississippi heat, and now we’re making Thanksgiving plans and wondering how Christmas managed to sneak up on us again. Somewhere between work, family obligations, school schedules, and the endless demands of everyday life, another year has nearly slipped through our fingers.
And that has me thinking about something I believe we could all use a little more of these days: gratitude.
Not the kind we reserve for Thanksgiving dinner, when everyone takes a turn naming their blessings before passing the dressing. I’m talking about the kind that changes how we look at an ordinary Tuesday, even when that Tuesday hasn’t been particularly kind to us.
It’s easy to be thankful when life is going our way. When the bills are paid, the children are behaving, everyone is healthy, and the world seems to be spinning in the right direction. Of course, those days when everything falls perfectly into place are few and far between!
And while we all have our share of worries, responsibilities, and days we’d rather forget, I believe there’s still plenty of good to be found if we take the time to notice it.
Maybe it’s the friend who calls just to check on you. The neighbor who brings your garbage can up from the road. The sound of your children laughing in another room, or the familiar voice of someone you love on the other end of the telephone.
Sometimes, it’s a good cup of coffee, a beautiful Mississippi sunset, or five uninterrupted minutes on the front porch.
None of those things costs much, but goodness, they’re worth a fortune.
And perhaps that’s where an attitude of gratitude begins. Not with pretending everything is wonderful, but with recognizing the wonderful things that exist even when everything isn’t.
In Mississippi, we know a thing or two about showing up for people. We take casseroles when someone is sick, check on our neighbors after a storm, and somehow always manage to find room for one more at the dinner table.
Those simple acts of kindness remind us that we have plenty to be thankful for, and plenty of opportunities to give someone else a reason to feel the same.
So, as we begin November, I hope we’ll make gratitude a daily habit rather than a holiday tradition.
Tell people you appreciate them. Notice the little things. Be generous with your kindness, your time, and your words.
After all, a thankful heart doesn’t require a perfect life.
One day, we may look back and realize that the ordinary days we hurried through were the very ones we should have been most thankful for.
