Most of us are very good about wishing each other Happy Thanksgiving in the days leading up to the big feast. Sometimes, we even discuss what our respective plans are for the week. The spirit of “Thanks” hangs in the air like the fog on a rainy morning. We say “Happy Thanksgiving” to just about anyone who will listen, but do we really say thanks?
How often do you take the opportunity to thank those around you for being around you? When was the last time you told a close friend you were thankful for their friendship? So often in life, the things that should obviously be said are left for another day. Then the day comes, but those you intended to thank are gone and the chance has passed.
I write this on Monday before Thanksgiving. I still have time to get some thank yous done before the cutting of the bird. Many of you will read this after the cutting and will be left with only about 30 days before Christmas to make your feelings known. Since there is no rule that the personal thanks need be given at or before the fourth Thursday of November, the best time to come forward with some personal thanks may be any other time of the year.
Giving thanks when it is unexpected can increase the impact what you’re saying has on the person. Any thanks is good thanks, but unexpected thanks can glow just a little bit brighter. That is not to say that giving thanks is all about making the other person feel good. Actually, I think that is exactly what I am saying. How could a habit of thanking people for what they do and for their role in your life be bad? There is really no downside unless you don’t want the people that help you to know that you appreciate it.
In closing, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the people who read this column. There is a therapeutic benefit that I get from writing this every week. Without you, I am nothing but an unpublished wannabe. I am still a wannabe, but I am published. “Thank You” for your continued support because a column is nothing without readers. That is especially true when you live way up in the “CHEAP SEATS!”