Thanksgiving in a World That Forgets Gratitude

: Armstrong Williams on Nov 28, 2024

Count your blessings on Thanksgiving. Be grateful for what you enjoy. Do not dwell on grievances. Be inspired by the sacrifices of the Pilgrims at our first Thanksgiving, overcoming hardships that would be unthinkable today. Half their number perished in their maiden winter.

Look on the sunny side of life -- endless opportunities to flourish based on skill, foresight, industry and ambition. Do not be held in bondage to the past. Move on. Life is imperfect, as mankind is made of crooked timber. Make the most of what you have. Nobody can steal your wisdom or spiritual purity -- the most valuable of your possessions.

Gratitude is the opposite of selfishness, egotism, avarice or narcissism. It is the alpha and omega -- community and domestic tranquility.

Americans enjoy more prosperity, convenience, luxury and safety than nearly any other people in human history. Our poorest citizens live better than medieval kings, with access to health care, technology and infrastructure that were unimaginable even a century ago. We live in the best of all possible worlds. Do not imitate Eeyore in "Winnie-the-Pooh," who discerned something negative about everything.

Social media tempts us with jealousy by exposure to others who occupy higher stations in life. Don't go down that road. Life is not a zero-sum game. We want everyone to be a winner.

Thanksgiving is our emancipation from self-absorption or selfishness. We gather with loved ones. We celebrate what we have. We do not regret what we have not. We never lose an opportunity to express gratitude for having a wonderful family and relatives. We never lose an opportunity to rejoice at residing in the United States, which sports the greatest Constitution in world history.

Let us strive every day without weary to diminish injustice, the end of government, the end of civil society. That is our reason for existence.

Our good fortune has not come by spontaneous combustion. It has been born of the accumulation of courage, wisdom and sacrifices through the ages. Let our ancestors not to have died in vain. Let us resist the forces that are racing us back to the Dark Ages.

Let us all express gratitude on Thanksgiving with unsparing love and benevolence to all in our respective circles. Gratitude is our deliverance from gloom or grievance.

Go for it.

Armstrong Williams is manager/sole owner of Howard Stirk Holdings I & II Broadcast Television Stations and the 2016 Multicultural Media Broadcast owner of the year. To find out more about him and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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