I’m Thankful For…

It’s Thanksgiving time and our thoughts turn to … giving thanks!
Even in the midst of financial and economic difficulty I encourage you to be thankful.
We live in the greatest country in the world, even with whatever negatives you perceive here.
Even the “poorest” among us is, in most cases, far better off than people in most other countries in the world.
So, look for the positives first. Then, look for ways to work on the negatives to turn them into positives, or to just eliminate them altogether.

We can be thankful for our families, our children (those of us who have children) and our friends.
Lead by example – model thankfulness for those around you. Teach your children to be thankful for what they have. This will help them learn to appreciate things they have and lead to greater appreciation of the value of a dollar. Teach about being content with current possessions and not always wanting more or always having to have the newest version of everything. That in turn should, hopefully, lead to a better approach to financial decision making and management of what they have as they grow older.

Since we have so much in this country, we can also be very wasteful at times. We should appreciate all that we have in comparison to others. We should also realize some of the things we don’t need or that we can do without. As we move into gift buying and gift giving season try to take a thoughtful approach to spending and buying decisions.

Also during this holiday season, look for ways to help others whose situation is not as good as yours. Find a canned food drive to which to contribute. Pass your child’s “gently used” clothing on to a relative or friend who has a child just getting to that clothing size. This is another way in which you can model something good for your family and friends and perhaps use as a teachable moment.

I’m thankful for my family, our health, our home and my job, among other things.

What are you thankful for?