November 2011
I wanted to take a unique
perspective on being thankful this Thanksgiving. (Sorry, I'm a month
late for my Canadian friends.) Last November I talked about active
thankfulness and giving thanks TO others (people) not just being
thankful for things.
When most folks think of being
thankful it's usually for the "positive" things in their life. I just
visited a website at www.thankfulfor.com where folks post what they are
thankful for. Here are a few examples of what I read:
- Fridays!
- My mother and the fact that she tells me she loves me every day.
- My awesome hair and all the compliments I get on it!
- 94 on my strategic management test
- My family and good friends
- Financial security
- Skype
- My health
- My kids sleeping in their own beds
There are thousands and thousands
more, but you get the picture. I am also thankful for many of the things
listed above but this year I'm also thankful for the not-so-positive
things. I'm thankful for:
- Having low self-esteem and self-confidence most of my life
- Having no money and taking 20 years to payoff my student loans
- Being bullied and teased as a dorky, cry-baby, jock growing up in a small town
- Failing and dropping Calculus III twice in college
I'm thankful for...
- Being diagnosed with melanoma when I was 17 years old
- Lying to a dear friend and having her never speak to me again
- Crying in the CFO's office (my boss) when he criticized my decisions and actions
- Not telling someone I loved them before it was too late.
These may seem like odd things to
be thankful for but it's not comfort and peace that create growth.
Discomfort and challenges trigger GROWTH.
I'm thankful for these things
because I now know that crying in your boss's office, being bullied and
teased, and being under massive debt may be painful but they are not
fatal.