Giving thanks
I was thinking about Thanksgiving this week (being way too stuffed to think about it last week). Thanksgiving is like a lot of holidays … we’ve redefined the purpose of it. It’s now pretty much a day for families and/or groups of people to get together to share a big meal. Not much “thanks” involved. And if there is thanks, it’s mostly a self-reflection on the good things if our lives. (“I’m thankful I have such a great family” … “I’m thankful that I was able to afford a new car” … “I’m thankful for the $5 off coupon I recently got” … that kind of thing.)But how about really giving thanks? If you’re married, when was the last time you thanked your spouse for … anything? When was the last time you genuinely thanked someone?
Years ago, I was a contractor for the late Digital Equipment Corporation. They had an “atta-boy” culture which I always admired. If someone did a good job, it was expected that the person would be congratulated and thanked. The cost of doing that is practically zero, but the benefit to the recipient is much larger.
How about trying something? Find one person every day to whom you can give genuine thanks – and do it with a smile. Thank a waitress for getting your food delivered quickly. If you go to church, thank a priest or minister for giving you something to think about. If you have children, thank them for something they did, even if it was something expected (cleaning their room, for example). Find a store manager and thank him or her for not having to wait too long in line to get to a register.
My guess is that occasionally you’re going to be looked at like you’ve got 2 heads. Of course, that’s because most people hardly ever feel like anyone appreciates anything they do, and they’re not sure how to react. That’s ok … you will have made a profound change for the better in their day. It wouldn’t surprise me if some of these recipients of your thanks went home and told someone at home about what happened to them that day.
That’s how each of us can make a small change.
Thanks for reading.
posted by Paul Wilczynski @ 1:21 PM
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