One of my favorite holidays is Thanksgiving. It’s a day set aside so that we, as a nation, can collectively give thanks for the good things in our lives and for the bad things we avoided.
But what exactly does it mean to give thanks? Giving thanks is defined as
the expression of gratitude, or the showing of appreciation. To thank. To acknowledge.
We know what it means to show appreciation, but what does gratitude mean? Gratitude is
the quality of being thankful; a readiness to show appreciation and to return kindness.
For the Roman statesman Cicero, gratitude was the most important virtue a person could have. He wrote
Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others.
I think Cicero was and still is on the money. Having a mindset of being grateful, makes us kinder and I think gentler people. It helps us to attain what is meant by the term human. We become humane individuals.
Cicero marked out five traits of the ungrateful person. They are
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- A person who doesn’t thank people, or try to repay favors
- A person who takes friendships for granted
- A person who forgets about the chain of kind acts and good events which have lead him (or her) to the present
- A person who doesn’t thank God for his (or her) blessings
- A person who takes his (or her) country for granted
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If we reverse these, we have five traits of the grateful person:
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- A person who thanks people and repays favors
- A person who values friendships and invests in them
- A person who reminds himself (or herself) of the chain of kind acts and good events which have brought him (or her) to the present
- A person who thanks God for his (or her) blessings
- A person who values his (or her) country and invests in its success
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I continually ask myself, “Am I a grateful person? Am I someone whose behavior is attractive to others? Am I a good role model?”
Now I have to be honest here: I fail more than I succeed. However, I don’t give up. I keep on training, as it were, so I can be the best person I can be. Just as a pro tennis player or baseball pitcher never stops practicing, or a soldier never stops training. They strive to be better at what they do.
I’m 69 years old. The actuarial tables regarding life expectancy are not as favorable as they were when I was 29. I’m in a race, as it were, to cross the finish line as a better human being than I was previously. But, then, aren’t we all.
There are nearly 8 billion people on this little planet. Valuable and essential resources are in diminishing supply. Technology is not advancing fast enough to address our problems. Therefore, unless we wish to become barbarians, we must embrace gratitude and thankfulness in order to survive.
And that’s what Thanksgiving is all about. It’s about becoming more human by being thankful, gracious, people.
Comments are always welcome. And until next time, happy living!
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