Think about how blessed you are. Sitting here, on your expensive mobile device or computer, which is actually a luxury, you probably forgot that this is not how everyone else in the world is experiencing the summer of 2015.
You are probably under some sort of shelter. If not, by a free choice, you are soaking up the rays of the sun. The fiery sun isn't harsh to you because you can go into air conditioned places at your leisure, turn on a blast of cold air in your car, or hop in a refreshing shower. If a few beads of sweat run down your face, you can choose to pack up and leave. You didn't mean to forget, but it probably slipped your mind that people only a few miles from you are homeless or toiling outdoors to make a meager living.
You are probably finding yourself in front of the refrigerator contemplating the next bored snack you'll half-enjoy. Knowing fully well that there is more where that came from, thankfulness isn't abounding.
For some reason, it is often believed that comparing oneself to others is a bad thing that limits moral character. By blinding ourselves to comparison, we should be more content with what we have and who we are. By choosing to turn away from anything with a hint of unpleasantness, we become numb to evaluating ourselves, leaving us in such a happy place with no responsibilities.
On the contrary, I stress to you that being comfortable and neglecting comparison is the fast-track to discontent. If we never compare ourselves to others, where are our life goals? Where is our humility and thankfulness for the things we consider mundane?
The answer to these questions is an apathetic shrug while turning back to our smartphone screens. The rest of the world is still stumbling through disappointing third-world problems that should be long gone, let alone "first world problems" that consume you and I! The disparity, the great expanse dividing the "rich" and "poor" in the world is terrifying. Looking at those who have succeeded at what we aspire to do should spur us on to greatness, and seeing those who have so little and are yet so content should bring us to abandon our egos.
I am not here to offend anyone who has these bounties, or to shame anyone who feels that they are suffering in an affluent area. Rather, I am here to challenge us to see the wonderful gifts that we find ourselves with; the basic gifts of health and freedom (no matter how compromised you feel freedoms are by a law or social movement). A right we don't have to forsake is the pursuit of almost anything we so choose!
Our streets are not regularly plagued with war and destruction that leaves us with missing limbs and family members. My world is not likely to end tomorrow because of someone else's opinion on politics, religion or affiliation. If you think that viewing that variety of physical poverty or disadvantage is heartbreaking, I invite you to ponder this:
Opening our eyes to the poverty of a never satisfied soul is just as depressing. If both inspiring realities and upsetting realities don't phase us, what will?
But this is where gratitude and the compassion in your heart come in and save the day! When we finally digest the fact that the little things in life are blessings and we are so fortunate to have them in our possession, we ought to give thanks.
The saddest tragedies of this planet should spark that part of you that is hopeful and willing to overcome. It starts with where you're planted. No one could choose the family they're born into, the situation of wealth or absence of it, so I call you to do what you can, right where you are.
I challenge you to thank those in your life that made it good. Forgive those who have made it sour. Protect those who have been silenced. And above all, give thanks for today. Every breath is a reason for an inward celebration, the beauty of every morning astounding. I challenge you and I to not leave being thankful to one day late in November, but for each day that we are given. Standing in front of that fridge should make you smile in (at least) a small moment of thanksgiving.
