Being Thankful

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I think it's very important to be thankful and feel thankful for all the great blessings we've had in life. Surely, we also experience some rocky times. - then we're the least likely to feel thankful. But we shouldn't be. To me life would be meaningless if it was just a bed of roses. Hard times make us all feel stronger, don't they? That's how I take hardships. A friend of mine was diagnosed with breast cancer , last week. She called me and said she'd love to buy me a coffee. Over coffee, she told me about her health problem. But she was smiling and said she'd be forever thankful for having such a great doctor, a great family and great friends.

I feel thankful for being healthy and happily married, I also feel thankful for being my own boss, and for the sheer joy of working with children! They're adorable! And they always make my day! I feel thankful and proud of having the coolest students ever! They may be testing my patience at times, but I love them all! To me feeling thankful is an inner need, and blogging made me realise how silly I was to spend time on the chat where most people would make you feel bad because you apologise or because you are thankful. If I need to apologise online or feel thankful, I will. We're humans, after all.

How does feeling thankful affect your life?

Comments

[Faith's Thoughts and Dreams]

The United States just had its annual Thanksgiving Day, followed by Black Friday. Anymore, we have lost the meaning of what Thanksgiving is all about. I have had to talk a great deal about it with my ELL kids, who have never celebrated it prior to yesterday. They know the "official" reason for it but I also told them that even though this is one day out of the year, We should have "thanksgiving" every day of the year. Our blessings are not just one day which is filled with Turkey and all the fixings and tons of parades and football. It is all about our daily thanks to God for providing our needs. Even though there are many who are without a lot of luxuries you and I have, we all have blessings. Food for the day; air to breathe; clothes (even if not designer) to wear; another day of waking up. My father tells me every day is a great day for which he is thankful, because it means he has gotten awake and is alive to work and help others.

Our idea of what "blessings" means might differ depending upon what we are used to living with but we all have blessings.

I am thankful for a job (which I complain about a lot); I am thankful for my family, even when some of them irritate the daylights out of me. I am thankful for my health, even though it is not the best.... I am able to walk about, work, breathe, and though surgery looks like it is on the horizon, I am alive while others are facing their mortality. I have a man who loves me more than I ever expected to be loved. When I turned 50, I pretty much resigned myself to being an "old maid" with no children and living a life alone and lonely.... but God blessed me with a man, 10,000 miles away and many mountains separating us (figuratively and literally) but I have no doubt he loves me and our love grows stronger every day. I was never able to have children (I lost a baby 36 yrs ago and could never conceive after that), but I am thankful because every year I have children who are "mine" for a year or more, and now I have "grandchildren" from them. I have dozens of nieces, nephews, great nieces and great nephews.

My life if full and getting better every day. I am so thankful for your friendship and the friendship of others whom I have met and come to love "online". God has given me great abundance, not financial, but I am greatly blessed and for that I thank God, and I thank you, Anastasia, for how you have influenced my life and love and the way I view my life. You have made a huge difference!!!!

[Constantinos]

When I look around me, I feel bitterly disappointed when I see so many people being selfish. They never apologise for anything, they are never thankful for anything and concentrate on their own little self. In fact, I wonder if such people have a life. I personally feel a better person when I show my gratitude to friends, family or colleagues.

[Anastasia]

The real treasures in life we should all feel thankful for aren't financial. In Cyprus, most families own a big house with a swimming-pool and one or even two Filipinos to take care of their children and their property. They are usually thankful for that, yet they always tend to want more and more material goods. But few of them will ever say to their Filipino maid "Thank you for taking care of my children." Like you, Faith, I first thank God for all my blessings. And then my husband, my family and my friends who truly care. And I think you are blessed to have Mesut's love.

[Anastasia]

So do I, Constantine mou. Like I said, being thankful is an inner need. And while I am thankful for all the material goods I've had so far, I still feel much more thankful for so much friendship and so much love in my life.

[Andry]

Aισθάνομαι απλά υπέροχα όταν εκφράζω την ευγνωμοσύνη μου - κυρίως όταν δεν υπάρχει κανένα συμφέρον. Διαφορετικά, μιλάμε για υποκρισία.

[Phivos Nicolaides]

You are too sweet Anastastia. Enjoy your weekend!

[Jim]

Being thankful - not necessarily on Thanksgiving - has given me an energetic, can-do attitude in life. Where I am today is not where I want to be, but I'm thankful for being where I am because now I have a very clear idea of what I don't want.So, I can work towards what I do want.

[Anastasia]

Ενα ευχαριστώ από καρδιάς είναι ό,τι καλύτερο μπορούμε να πρεσφέρουμε στους γύρω μας. Συμφωνώ. Δεν αρκεί μόνο να το λέμε αλλά να το νιώθουμε.

[Anastasia]

Thank you, Phivo mou. I hope you are also enjoying this beautiful sunny Sunday. Filakia.

[Anastasia]

You are right Jim. There are so many miserable people who are always complaining about something, always wishing for more...They never smile, they never think positive, they never count their blessings and, if you ask them what they are thankful for, they'd probably be unable to answer.

[Jean-Paul Bouvier]

L'Action de Grâces n'est pas célébrée en France. Toujours est-il qu'il faut être reconnaissant de ce qu'on a sans trop se plaindre de ce qu'on a pas tout en remerciant nos proches de ce qu'ils nous ont offert - n'importe quel jour de l'année.

[Account Deleted]

Since childhood, my parents imparted to us a spirit of gratitude especially to God who provides us with everything we need. What we don't have, we also thank for because we were taught that what we don't have is not for us at this time or never at all. Being thankful all the time, praising the graciousness of God has made me content and very happy. It allows me to perceive that what we have is enough and that the problems others have are greater than our own. It also puts me to give to others because I have what I need.

[Christina]

There's nothing more rewarding than being thankful for what God has provided us with - even if this is just our daily bread.

[Ted S]

The Thanksgiving season is a wonderful time to heighten your sensitivity to the blessings bestowed by God. Thanksgiving grabs your attention, shakes the cobwebs loose, and reminds you of all God's most precious gifts. That's one reason Thanksgiving has always held such a special place in my heart. It rekindles in me the kind of God-centered gratitude that our Lord demands and deserves - the kind that should readily be on our lips year round.

[Karolina]

I am thankful every day for all the experiences I had - good or bad - for evrything my parents did and continue to do for me and for all the blessings of God. What I think is sad is the fact that not many people would get up in the morning and say "Thank you God" for what God has blessed them to have.

[Laura]

Being thankful opens up the way to happiness and to a tremendous sense of fulfilment.

[Anastasia]

When I think that many people in the world, including children, can't have their daily bread or their daily milk, the need to be thankful for God's blessings becomes stronger than ever.

[Anastasia]

Yes Ted, a heartfelt "thank you" should be on our lips every single day of the year. Gratitude can be such a rewarding feeling!

[Anastasia]

Karolina, I also feel sad about this - especially when I meet people who are always complaining and never count their blessings. What's worse, they think that saying "thank you" is ...degrading!

[Anastasia]

That's right Laura. As far as I am concerned, it is mostly this feeling of inner satisfaction eventually leading to fulfilment.

[Anastasia]

I must say, I am impressed you thank God for what you don't have. This is simply wonderful. Thank you for sharing. And I do hope your comment will be an example for us all.

[Anastasia]

Je pense que la reconnaissance nous rend meilleurs - c'est une grande vertu.

[Tipper]

Good post Anastasia! Being thankful makes me realize anew how truly blessed I am. I was raised to always be grateful-cause there are so many folks who don't have the blessings I do. I hope I'm instilling that same thankfulness in my girls.