What are you thankful for?

As Thanksgiving approaches we all tend to think about what we are thankful for or at least we should. Whether it is family, a job, your favorite past time, fitness or travel or multiple things we should all take the time to appreciate what we have. Too often we get wrapped up in needing more and more and not appreciating what is right in front of us. It seems in the world now that selfishness and greed take over and it always seems that the grass is greener on the other side and happiness is harder to sustain. I know I used to think this way at times still have lapses where I think what if? Edit

I have learned and trained myself over the past couple years to be thankful for what I have. A healthy and loving family, friends that are like family, fitness, and quality of life. I really have little to complain about or be disappointed in but, negative thoughts are for some reason easier to dwell on than positive. I need to express more to those around me how thankful I am for them and for what they bring to my life. I also want to teach my son that quality of life, family and friends are the most important things. Material things come and go but your support system, health and wellness will always be the core of happiness.

I want him to think differently than I did growing up. I want him to learn to be thankful for everyday experiences and the people in your life. Teaching him to be thankful for what the world dishes out to you instead of dwelling on things you can’t control, will hopefully make him happier and have the ability to create his own path. I could tell yesterday when we were hiking and he was thanking his water and the grass that we are setting a foundation. He is learning to critically think and reach his own decisions instead of just taking what we say as how it is. That makes for challenging parenting sometimes but, it is what we want for him. Create your own happiness and not to let others define your happiness is what we want to instill in his developing mind. I feel this will make him mentally, physically and emotionally stronger. It will create meaning in the things he is passionate about without worrying about money and material things that are secondary. What behavior are you modeling? What are you thankful for? Do you only think about being thankful on holidays or when something bad happens? I feel it generates more happiness if you think about thankfulness as often as possible. Live in the positive! It’s a constant challenge for some of us, but it’s worth it.