![\"Living](\"https:\/\/smps.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Doug-Steak-board-banner.jpg\")
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It\u2019s nearly Thanksgiving\u2014my favorite time of the year. I love this holiday more than any other mainly because the expectations are spending time with family and friends, indulging in really great food derived from age-old recipes, and daytime napping is allowed (if not encouraged). But most important to me is the spirit of gratitude that\u2019s fundamental to Thanksgiving.\u00a0 For the past several years, I\u2019ve worked hard to live in gratitude. It\u2019s not easy. I\u2019m impatient, often petulant, and a bit impossible by nature. That\u2019s a lot to combat. But life threw a few wrenches directly at me and the result was an awakening of thankfulness. I strive to keep that at the forefront\u2014and do\u2014most days.<\/p>\n
This year has been tough. Really tough. 2020 has been a collective global challenge on so many levels.\u00a0 Of course, the pandemic tops the list with all its accompaniments: isolation, unemployment, and so much more. Add in the polarization surrounding the 2020 U.S. election, and it can be hard to live in gratitude. But I think the alternative isn\u2019t an acceptable choice.<\/p>\n
Ralph Waldo Emerson said, \u201cCultivate the habit of being grateful for every good thing that comes to you, and to give thanks continuously. And because all things have contributed to your advancement, you should include all things in your gratitude.\u201d Include all things<\/em> in your gratitude. Wow. Emerson is right. We are who we are because of all that we encounter\u2014the good, the bad, and all that\u2019s in between. Now the hard part: cultivating gratitude as a habit.<\/p>\n Every night, I take time to reflect on my day and journal the one or two things that occurred that I\u2019m thankful for or that were significant. The discipline required to make this exercise a habit has been unlike anything I\u2019ve accomplished before. I\u2019ve had misses, but most every day for the last four years, I\u2019ve taken time to reflect. Then, each morning, I start my day by reading what I wrote the night before. It may seem simple, but this practice has made a difference. I\u2019m still difficult at times, but I\u2019m trying, and my journal is influential to living in gratitude.<\/p>\n I challenge each of you to strive to live in gratitude. What discipline or exercise can you put into practice to cultivate a life focused on gratitude? Yes, there will always be challenges. But, there will always be things to be thankful for. The American children\u2019s author, Douglas Wood, said \u201cThe heart that gives thanks is a happy one, for we cannot feel thankful and unhappy at the same time.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite the disruption and challenges this year, and in the spirit of Thanksgiving, I\u2019d like to share with you what I\u2019m most thankful for in 2020: my health, friends who are family, my SMPS family and the opportunity to serve as president, terrific business partners and a thriving first-year company, airline extensions on travel rewards, (finally) discovering Dan Levy and \u201cSchitt\u2019s Creek\u201d, and (mostly) making People Magazine<\/em> with my new rescue cat named Steak.<\/p>\n Happy Thanksgiving. Be well. Be grateful.<\/p>\n