Thankful, Grateful, Blessed

I love this phrase—thankful, grateful, blessed. I have seen it on shirts, pillows, and wooden signs. (I will take one of each of those, please!)

As I flip my calendar to November—a month where we set aside a whole day for Thanksgiving—spending some time thinking about this group of words couldn’t be more appropriate.

Thankful

A simple, common word used to express appreciation.

I am conscious of the many things I have to be thankful for, like clean running water, power, a washer and dryer, a phone that has a signal and works (most of the time), a car, and a structure (my home) that provides safety and shelter and is filled with many, many other things.

Grateful

A bigger form of thankful.

Things are just things. If I dig down deep within me and try to identify what I am truly grateful for, something specific surfaces every time—people. Sure, the things I listed above provide some level of comfort and contentment, but true pleasure (at least for me) comes from my family, friends, and acquaintances.

I am most reminded of this at this time of year, when I glance at the empty seats at our Thanksgiving table. I am grateful for the time I had with loved ones whose presence lives on in the memory of their smiles and their words, which still echo in my mind and guide me.

Blessed

A deep sense of contentment.

For me, feeling blessed is a state of being—a sort of place. Not a physical one, but an emotional one. An attitude, perspective, or special way to view the things, people, and events in my life. And arriving at this place of feeling blessed extends beyond feeling thankful and grateful.

Arriving at a place of feeling blessed requires me to examine my heart and move past seeking comfort in comparisons between what I have and someone else’s lack of luck or misfortune.

I have to do more than list all the things I am thankful for to arrive at this blessed place of fulfillment.

I have to do more than just remind myself, “It could always be worse,” or “This too shall pass.”

I have to move past needing or attaining this, that, and the other thing.

To arrive at a place where I feel blessed, I have to sit in the middle of “life” and allow myself to realize I already have enough … I already am enough.

I am thankful, grateful, blessed!

As you turn your calendar to November, what comes to mind when you think of these three words?