As November approaches, everyone talks about giving thanks. Thanksgiving, our national holiday of thanks, arose from hard times. The first Thanksgiving took place after nearly half the pilgrims and many of the Native Americans had died. It became a national holiday in 1863 in the middle of the Civil War; and in 1939, following the Great Depression, it was moved to November.
In difficult and uncertain times, people realize how powerless they are and how, in a second, their lives can change. In the work I do as a medium, it can be difficult to ask people to find gratitude in their lives. Most of the time their lives are filled with sorrow and grief. In their darkness, it is very hard for them to see the light.
It is important to make a distinction between feeling grateful and being grateful. We don’t always have total control over our emotions. We cannot easily will ourselves to feel grateful, less depressed, or happy, especially after the death of a loved one. Being grateful is a choice, an attitude that endures even in the darkest time. Processing an horrific experience through a grateful lens does not mean denying it. Instead, it means realizing the power you have to transform a terrible experience into a positive channel for gratitude. Finding gratitude even for the smallest thing will help your mind shift from sadness. Gratitude creates a new focus and breaks the stream of sadness.
I would like to share a story from my client Rosemary. She was able to find thanks even through her grief. Her daughter Jen struggled from the age of thirteen. Even at this young age, Jen knew that she did not want to be alive. Rosemary did everything to help her daughter find happiness. She tried many different types of therapies. Her daughter learned multiple religions trying to find her sense of purpose. But to no avail. Jen could not find a reason to live. Anyone who knew Jen thought she was a normal teen, but deep in her heart she longed to leave this world. At seventeen she committed suicide.
When I met Jen, she was in the heavenly realm. She had a big smile on her face and in her arms she held her favorite cat Cosmo. Her spirit thanked her mother for being her best friend and understanding her struggle. Jen has now found her sense of purpose and explained that her soul was not ready for this world. Rosemary told me that everyday she gives thanks. She is so grateful to be her mother and that she had seventeen years with her amazing child, but most of all she is so thankful that her beautiful daughter is now at peace.