Thanksgiving is supposed to be a time for reflection of your life, your loved ones, and the things you hold dear to your heart. Thanksgiving is supposed to focus on appreciating the things that you already have and feel blessed for having. Thanksgiving is supposed to revolve around the company of family and friends.

For many of us, Thanksgiving is no longer any of that.

Thanksgiving has become…

• Retail workers being forced to work instead of spending time with their families.
• Shopping all hours of the night to get the best deals.
• Rushing through a meal to watch a football game.
• Getting a few days off from school or work.
• Worrying more about the food on the table than the people around it.

Yes, most people love to spend less money when shopping, to watch a football game, to have a few days off, and to eat platefuls of delicious food but those are not the things that should make this holiday so great.

There are certainly added bonuses, but this holiday could be equally as great if not better without those the deals, the football game, the mini-vacation and the food.

This holiday was meant to appreciate the things you already have. So why do we rush the holiday just to get more things. The reason most people rush through this holiday is to shop or to watch a game. Why do we rush through times with our family for items that will be sold for weeks to come or to watch a game that we could record and watch later?

If we all spent 1 extra hour with our family and friends next Thanksgiving, more memories would be made and more love would be shared. The things you are rushing to buy can be bought at another time or replaced. That person you are sitting next to will be gone one day. The conversation you had with them before rushing out to shop could be your last conversation with them. Is that thing worth it? Is saving $100 worth missing out on a laugh with your dad or taking a picture with your grandparents?

No. That laugh and that picture cannot be replicated or bought in 10 years. It is irreplaceable. Don’t forget to cherish the irreplaceable. Those irreplaceable people and moments are the reason you are who you are and the reason you are where you are.