Every year we celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday as a much anticipated long weekend.  For most people, Thanksgiving is a day of gathering of friends and family around our dinner tables. We decorate our houses in the colors of fall, bring out our best family recipes and play games late into the evening, while sipping on some hot chocolate or coffee to warm our bellies. At least, that is how I remember and continue to celebrate my Thanksgiving holiday.

The month of November is a very special time for me. Not only is Thanksgiving my favorite holiday, it is the month that I got married in, the same week as Thanksgiving practically. I also share my anniversary date with very dear friend of mine, which was very coincidental and made it that much more special. We celebrated our one year anniversary this month. The last year has been a roller coaster of trials and tribulations in our life, for it had many new learning experiences. We reflected on questionable decisions, dealt with a few bumps in the road, but overall have had a wonderful year.

This year has taught me a valuable lesson on being thankful. With the everyday hustle and bustle of life, we often forget about what is most important to us and take for granted all we already have. This includes our significant other or our families. Our desensitized world of the things in it and the people we love, that are so common place in our lives, become background noise. Our appetites for bigger, better, and more is ever-increasing with time. Wanting a bigger house, buying that brand-new car or basically desiring luxuries we possibly can’t afford , but are still finding a way to make it happen. Getting so caught up in all the trends of what we don’t have, instead of truly appreciating all that we possess. I’ve been guilty of it, so I can be the first to say that I’ve walked in those shoes.

This past year ,I can truthfully say, I’ve had a awakening of sorts. I have met some incredible people in the last year and they have had a very propitious effect on my life. “An attitude of gratitude” is a saying I have found depth and profundity in. The times that I feel troubled, I sometimes find this saying hard to apply to my life. It’s something that I’ve had to work at, but in the end, it always makes me feel better and allows me to re-center myself.

This holiday season, reflect on all the good things in your life, remember everything and everyone you are thankful for. If times are tough for you, try to focus on the positive aspects of your life. Not only is it time with family, sharing delicious food, family traditions and a paid holiday.. It’s a time to understand what Thanksgiving is really about. So take that “journei”, and travel down the path of gratitude. It’s a day to give thanks for each other.

If you have a story you would like to share, I would love to hear it! Happy Thanksgiving!

Photo above by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash

Photos by Lisa Pattiani