If I were to nominate another concept to become a Country School value, it would be gratitude, the underlying urge behind Thanksgiving. Last year I wrote and spoke some about a research project I had come across which concluded that “people who remember to give thanks every day feel better, have more energy, are better liked, and are likely to be more successful.” Cultivating a regular habit of gratitude also was found to lead to higher levels of positive emotions, life satisfaction, vitality, and optimism, and lower levels of stress and depression.
Thus, I was intrigued when I recently came across Happily Grateful, a slim, non-research tested volume containing various musings that point a way toward cultivating a consistent “attitude of gratitude.” In it, Thornton Wilder is quoted as having written, “We are most alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures.”
In our society of magnificent plenty, it is important that we try to attune our children to the treasures that surround them. It may take some practice to get children to consider what they have to be thankful for, but a good place to start is with the people who matter most to them. Expressing gratitude for people can strengthen bonds, reinforce positive behaviors and values, and nourish the spirits of both the person expressing gratitude and the one receiving the thanks. Over time, parents can lead their children from this concrete starting point towards expressing gratitude for other, more abstract aspects of their lives. While it often takes a conscious effort by parents to impart such a sense of perspective and balance, it ultimately is a habit that can lead children towards greater fulfillment, appreciation, and accomplishment.
Thanksgiving offers the perfect opportunity to take stock of the wonder, bounty, and good fortune that surround us. It offers the chance, as Happily Grateful points out, to recognize that “Abundance is not something we acquire. It is something we tune into.” I wish you and your family a very Happy Thanksgiving.