The question asked is why we should be grateful. My question is why shouldn’t we? Even in the worst of times there are things to be grateful for. And what does it hurt to look for a reason? Either you think you have nothing in life to be grateful for and you feel miserable, or you find a reason to give thanks and maybe feel a little uplifted. It’s a matter of deciding to be happy or not.
Here’s a very small reason to be thankful: if you are reading this, you either own or you have access to a computer and the Internet, one of the most powerful forces on earth. With the Internet, you can change your life—find a job, find a wife (or husband), shop for a new dress or a new car, check the news, check the stock market—virtually (literally) anything you want.
Another reason to be thankful: most of us live in free nations where we can succeed if we work hard, stay positive, make good contacts, and (more importantly) make good friends. We are free to turn our hobbies and passions into a profession. Sadly, we’re also free to do nothing with our lives if we choose—though that seems like a waste of freedom.
We can have as many children as we’d like, marry whom 
we like, live where we like (for the most part). In the States (unless you’re on a college campus), you can speak your mind, vote for the candidate of your choice, attend church where you want. Here we live in a vertical society, where—again, with hard work—we can rise in the world “above our station.” We aren’t restricted to a class. If we aspire to become billionaires, we have the opportunity—and lots of us have succeeded.
If all of this isn’t enough to be thankful for, take it to a more personal level. Most of us have someone (or more than one someone) to be thankful for. Even if we’ve had the very worst home lives possible, we have a friend, a teacher, a coach who cares what happens to us. Even in the darkest night, most of us have a candle within reach. I’ll always be grateful for the people in my life who helped me grow and learn to love unconditionally.
I do hope this post doesn’t sound sanctimonious–I don’t mean for it to. Years ago I was told that everyone makes their own happiness, and I’ve found that to be true. We wake up each day with the choice to make the best of life that we can, or not to. It isn’t up to anyone else to make us happy, we have it within ourselves. Some of us have to look harder than others to find things to be grateful for, but there’re always reasons. Once you start recognizing those reasons, it will get easier and easier to keep finding them.
Each and every day brings new reasons to give thanks. I don’t have a hard time finding them, whether it’s the beauty of a field of golden wheat or a star shooting across the heavens or rolling over in bed to snuggle up to my special person. I hope you find thousands of reasons to be thankful, too, not only in this season but all year long.
Read the next blog in the blog hop by going here.
Dee
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