“Gratitude is not only the greatest of all virtues, but the parent of all others.”
Cicero
By: Opal Murray
HOLLYWOOD – Recently, I had a wonderful conversation with a friend who lives in Atlanta. At some point in the conversation we started talking about the change from summer to autumn.
With much pride and gaiety she announced that because the temperature would be dipping in the 30’s that evening she now has the first opportunity this autumn to light her fireplace. Well, my Caribbean blood had also sensed that the weather was cooling down so I mentioned that the temperature had also dipped in south Florida. “Oh”, she said, “What is it now?” Innocently, I said “Low eighties.” There was such a roar on the other end of the line one would have thought both Oliver Samuels and Richard Pryor were delivering their trademark humor. Her laughter was so contagious, I couldn’t help myself, I joined her. Yet, laugh if you will, I do know that a breezy 82°F day feels much different from a humid 97°F afternoon.
With this change in temperature, Mother Nature is, once again, reminding us that we must prepare for a shift. In many cultures in the southern hemisphere, people are getting ready for summer. In many cultures in the northern hemisphere the change signals harvest time. In the United States, the public event that is connected, even though remotely, to this agrarian activity is Thanksgiving Day.
For some, Thanksgiving Day is a time to feast and be entertained. For some it is a day to protest the inhumane treatment meted out to Native Americans by the Europeans. For others it is the eve of ‘Shop ‘til you Drop’ Day. Yet for some it is literally a day to give thanks. Giving thanks for our modern/industrial/commercial harvest, the harvest of acquisitions – homes, money, wealth, cars, toys, family, jobs, careers, friends, food, health, etc.
There are also those among us who give thanks for the gifts that are on their way to them. There is a Native American prayer that says “I give thanks for the unknown blessings already on their way.” A growing number among us truly believe in this prayer. They believe that when they knock the door will be opened, that when they ask it will be given and that when they seek, they will find. Having this belief, they know that worry, fear and uncertainty no longer have a place in their lives. They now celebrate each moment giving thanks for the blessings not yet manifested but ‘already on their way.’
This Thanksgiving/Harvest season, let us accept a shift in our consciousness. Let us affirm that each day we will give thanks for the trinity: our past, present and very important, our future. Giving thanks for our trinity will lead us to celebrate our lives. We will truly feel the difference in living when we give thanks for the seen as well as the unseen. It will be just as evident as the difference between a humid, stagnant 97°F day and fresh, breezy 82°F day.
Opal O. Murray
Life Coach
“Your Guide to Meaningful Living”
