My Rethinking of Thanksgiving
As I have aged, my opinions about life has changed. I think most come from different schools of thought in regards to the nature of life in general. One either leans towards a “life is beautiful/wonderful” or a “life is hard/tough” school of thought. Thanksgiving is similar. We are often thankful for the things we have or thankful for the things that haven’t happened to us. One is thankful that they aren’t like those with less.
I am thankful that I have a job…
I am thankful that we are all healthy…
The problem with this line of thinking is that it is temporary. I think life is wonderful and it is also very hard. As soon as one has it together, life will knock you down again. Life will take things away, reward the unjust and punish the good in a way that seems to be without a meaning or system. What then, will we be thankful for? It is a question that erodes at the traditional ideals of Thanksgiving for me. Life will always be painful and hard but it can be wonderful. I guess the one thing I am thankful for is that, with each day, I have a chance to try again. I get a chance to take the hard days, the painful times, and the setbacks and try to bounce back from them. I will never have a guarantee that anything will work out. I am thankful for the chance to try to make it all work out, knowing that I will often fall short but if I keep trying, life will work out in my favor more times than not. That is what I give thanks for: each day’s opportunity to try again.
