Giving Thanks
What does giving mean at Thanksgiving?
Thanksgiving will soon be here. Tucked into my thoughts of pie, turkey, football and family, I keep coming back to the word – giving. What does the “giving” part of Thanksgiving really mean?
Giving thanks. That seems easy enough to understand. It means expressing gratitude for something. Expressing our gratitude can benefit us personally, as well as those around us. In my family, we have a tradition at Thanksgiving where each person can reflect and share specific things for which they are thankful.
There are many different ways to give
But is that all there is to this holiday? Some years, it is. Taking time to reflect and realize that even though there have been difficulties and challenges, there have also been good things. Sharing our gratitude with those around us also changes us. Consistently practicing a thankful perspective can lead us to a point where the idea of giving at Thanksgiving is about more than just saying “thank you.”
The poet Alberto Rios wrote in “When Giving is All We Have” that “Giving has many faces: It is loud and quiet, Big, though small”. There are many different ways to give this holiday. Some of us may be able to give tangibly to others. Our needs are met and then some. Others may be in more difficult situations, struggling to find something to be thankful for this Thanksgiving.
Giving Can Create Something Greater
Whatever your circumstances are this year, I would encourage you to think about “giving” this Thanksgiving. Whether it is a simple “thank you” or something more tangible, our gifts have the potential to create something greater for ourselves and others.
“Giving is, first and every time, hand to hand,
Mine to yours, yours to mine.
You gave me blue and I gave you yellow.
Together we are simple green. You gave me
What you did not have, and I gave you
What I had to give – together, we made
Something greater from the difference.”
Alberto Rios, from “When Giving is All We Have”
From Westlark Advisors
The Westlark Advisors Team has a lot give thanks for this year!
- We give thanks for our clients who allow us to serve them every day.
- We give thanks for the amazing and talented people we work with, both inside and outside the propane and LPG industries.
- We give thanks for family and friends who support us – no matter the circumstances.
- We give thanks for ALL of you and hope you all have many things to be thankful for this holiday season.
Warm wishes from Westlark Advisors for a holiday full of thanks and giving!
Giving Thanks
By JD Buss
