What pops into your mind when you think of Thanksgiving? If you’re like me, you really can’t get that turkey out of your head. My son told me that on the east coast, they just call it “turkey day”. What happened to the “thanks” in Thanksgiving?
It’s easy to blame the media for the secularization of our holidays (“holy days”). Headlines scream about how much money will be spent on “Black Friday”, and how many “shopping days” remain before Christmas. Even movie releases are characterized by how much money is earned: “Bambi grosses $10.2 million this weekend!”
Let’s not blame the media for reporting on mundane news—that’s their choice. It’s our responsibility to remember the meaning behind the rituals and holidays in our culture. Do you need CNN to remind you to be grateful on Thanksgiving Day? Of course not!
As the creator of your life, you decide how to celebrate the holidays…and every other day. You decide whether to gather in spiritual communities and celebrate those things that cannot be measured in dollars and cents. You decide whether your heart is half empty, half full, or overflowing with gratitude.
Sometimes attention gets stuck on mundane matters — the 401K, the mortgage. Yet, we know that these things are impermanent creations of the world and like all things physical, they will pass.
When we are grateful, we see the best in what has been given to us; our hearts open and we experience a glimpse of divinity. When we are appreciative, our attention springs forth from our infinite core and radiantly blesses our world.
Holidays are your opportunity to share intangible gifts with your loved ones, colleagues and customers. Being grateful is not just an exercise in “happy thoughts”; by seasoning your consciousness with gratitude, you become a light, a bodhisattva, that helps relieve suffering in the world. There is no higher calling.
Gratitude opens a crack in consciousness that lets grace in.
—Harry Palmer, Author of the Avatar Materials
About Tony Cecala
Tony is a business strategist. He publishes the Holistic Networker and produces the Wellness Expo. In his spare time he reads about technology and the mind.
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