Gratitude and Goals

My husband does not celebrate Thanksgiving. He has a large objection for what happened historically and while I completely understand, I still want to celebrate the good intentions of sharing and giving. We often use Thanksgiving as a time to celebrate loved ones and things we recognize as blessings. And while we share these blessings with loved ones around the table, do we ever share the things we have done to make others grateful? Not as a boast or a challenge but as a heartfelt moment of feeling grateful that we were able to better someone's life or give a little happiness to a stranger just because we are blessed enough that we can.

Last year, my husband went to the toy store and came home timid because he didn't know how I would react to something he did. We were already over budget for the kid's Christmas presents and he shared with me that the guy in line in front of him was buying his son a bike and was short some money. The people in line behind them moaned and groaned for taking up their "precious time" and my husband instantly felt the need to buy the bike for the guy! Why? Because we were blessed enough to be able to do so and he did it without thinking, which is why he was nervous that I would be upset. He explained how he talked to the guy outside and how the guy was just down on his luck and his wife had been very sick and he was happy that he could help someone out. At that moment I was very proud of my husband for doing something so selfless!

Every year my mom looks forward to doing The Giving Tree program where you pick a card off of a Christmas tree and this card provides a name, age, and a gift that they would like or need. She always finds a child and an adult and usually we go shopping for them together and we enjoy picking out presents for people we don't know but we do know that they will be appreciative! What makes it even more worth while is that a lot of her co-wokers will ask why she does it every year and go on to blab about how they won't do it because they have their own kids to buy stuff for. Obviously she does too but we understand that helping others is important as well. What if we were the ones in need?

My grandfather use to be the type that would give strangers rides (totally don't recommend this anymore for safety reasons) and buy strangers meals. He was always willing to help people out because he grew up without a father and took care of his mother and siblings. He was one of the most selfless men I knew and sometimes I ask my self "What would grandpa do?" and I do it. Even though he's gone now, I still hear all his sayings in my mind and I miss the days where he would send me care packages in college! It was the little things he did that made such an impact in my life and I bet he thought I wasn't even paying attention!

It is clear how my love ones impact my life and push me to be a better person. My girl friends are also great examples of doing good deeds and having big hearts. I hope that my husband and I are able to instill that in our kids. I want them to be happy to help others and I will challenge them to do so! So my question to you is what can you do to positively impact someone's life? Whether it is someone you know or a complete stranger, you have the power to make a difference!

I hope this chart helps to inspire you to be grateful for your blessings and to use some of your blessings to bless others. Pass on the love! Inspire the Universe!

With Love,

#GRATITUDE #GIVETHANKS #PAYITFORWARD