Editor's note: The original version of this column was published Nov. 23, 2008, yet its message remains as valid today as it was then.
It's hard to believe yet another Thanksgiving week has rolled around already. Although it's not all that surprising, I suppose, since it's been said that the passage of time is a construct of the human mind that provides context to our existence.
Nonetheless, enough has unfolded over the past dozen months to make us deeply concerned with what may await us in the next 12. While we remain sadly divided politically as a state and nation, we still can benefit personally by pausing to realize what we have to feel grateful for only two days before Thanksgiving.
Exactly what is the nature of your gratitude? I'm willing to bet it doesn't lie in your vehicle, house, credit cards or the big-screen TV. Instead, I'll surmise that, like me, you are genuinely thankful for the influential people in your life and those who have been there for you over the years.
I'm also guessing you're still most grateful for being born in this country, where you've been able to worship and travel and associate as you please. The founders realized 240 years ago how thankful our society would be to have those qualities of life.
All the things we've accumulated, all of which one day will wind up in a landfill, add no purpose, enduring value or joy to existence. That means expressing thanks for the transient and superficial amounts only to a hollow sense of irrelevance.
Reflect on the first time you laid eyes on your child's or grandchild's sweet, smooth face. Remember that caring teacher who made all the difference in your life? Can you still hear your mother or father's laugh? See their expressions when they were happy or sad?
Can you visualize your closest friends over the years? Do you still feel especially connected when you leave church on a Sunday morning or feel that sense of unity with those around you who share your last name or your beliefs?
Now that is the stuff that sticks and makes us know that something far greater than our misguided, flawed selves temporarily placed us here for something other than a television program, reality-erasing social media or how many calories we can pack in at a single sitting. It's in that knowledge that I've discovered the four simple aspects that I believe can prompt true happiness within us, the kind of fulfillment and satisfaction that warrants thankfulness.
First, I believe that each of us requires a sense of purpose for being here. That purpose can be as simple as cutting lumber or as technical as building a Mars land rover. It can exist in what we give of ourselves to others and how we make a difference by even being conscious. The real thing that matters is that we discover and apply ourselves to a higher purpose for arising each morning.
I've also come to believe since we are social animals, human beings require someone with whom we can share our joys and heartaches. I can admire a spectacular sunset alone, yet it's far more rewarding to share and appreciate such a magnificent experience with another. The same can be said of everything we do. Sharing with others naturally brings warm and affirming satisfaction.
Next, I believe that it enriches life, and therefore helps generate happiness, to have something we can anticipate. Because we are such curious and adventuresome creatures, we need something to look forward to in our lives. This can be virtually anything, from a trip to an anticipated dinner or seeing family or friends. It also can be anticipation of what transcendent mysteries await this fragile state of limited consciousness.
Finally, I believe, based on my own experiences, that expressing a sincere faith in and devotion to the divine creator who gave us this nation and its unprecedented liberties provides a legitimate outlet for gratitude and generates fulfillment and happiness.
Since I'm speaking honestly this morning, I believe that, as a country, increasing numbers of us, we the people, have taken that reality for granted by increasingly pretending, even denying, that the United States of America was not blessed from its inception. Our sacred Constitution, its Bill of Rights and our Declaration of Independence, all inspired by spiritual gifting, would beg to differ.
Offering sincere thanks for our very existence in an environment of freedom and free enterprise on a planet filled with anguish seems to be not only a fundamental ingredient of happiness, but essential to what the coming months and year may hold.
In light of the many significant global, national and personal events we've witnessed flashing past since the last holiday season, it's a good time to spend a few minutes in earnest gratitude, for all we still have remains worthwhile.
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Mike Masterson's column appears regularly in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Email him at [email protected].
Editorial on 11/22/2016