Yesterday we celebrated Thanksgiving in the United States. It is one of my favorite holidays because it has come to be associated with three of my favorite activities – being with family, eating good food, and watching football. It is also a special time for giving thanks.

Many countries and cultures have rituals associated with giving thanks – whether or not they have official holidays designated for the purpose.

In our household, we try not to make it a holiday devoted to a lot of deep thinking, but we do take some time around the Thanksgiving table to highlight some of the things that lead us to be thankful.
But I also have a personal ritual on that day.

I am an advocate of taking some “alone time” during the day – for relaxation, meditation, and non-task-oriented thinking. On Thanksgiving Day, I use my alone time to particularly focus upon the things for which I am especially thankful and grateful.

I express internally my appreciation and gratitude for people and opportunities that have been meaningful to me. I particularly note whether I have actually expressed my gratitude to people who are deserving of it. And I use that time as a call to action – committing myself to appropriately convey my thanks to others as soon as possible.

Holidays have purposes. Thanksgiving is a holiday whose purpose includes sensitizing us to things for which we are grateful and to properly express our thanks to those deserving of it. I’ve found that going through my Thanksgiving thinking ritual during my alone time that day actually also makes me more alert to expressing thanks rather than taking the helpful behavior of others for granted when future acts of kindness occur.

I encourage you try using the thankfulness process that I’ve described – even if you don’t live in a country that celebrates Thanksgiving. It’s not a huge investment in time, and there’s no downside. I’ve always found that I feel better when I not only recognize that I’ve benefitted from the efforts of others but I’ve also let them know about my gratitude.

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