Except For The Turkey!

This time of year nearly everyone remembers how and why they should be thankful. Especially with Thanksgiving less than a week away. The trick, and the truth, is ; Are we thankful everyday or just on the day, the week, the month we are scheduled to be?
The Holiday is the perfect time to gather those around you that you love and are grateful to have in your life and thank the God of Heaven for all that you've been blessed with. However, did you do that same thing on June 3, or Jan. 17 or Oct. 1? Why would you? Unless those dates have a significance in your life and your family, then why give thanks? My question is why Not?
I had a roof over my head on those days. I had a husband I love, Kids who make my world go around and the blessings that 97% of the world don't have.
My country isn't rocked by bombs exploding overhead. I don't go to the store, in the dark so know one will see me, and come home worried that my small apartment will have been crushed in an explosion by miss ells while I'm gone. I don't worry that I'll have to make two pork rinds and a handful of rice feed my 5 children. I don't pray that the result of my husband getting off work early is going to be a funeral. I don't take my water home to boil it over a fire to keep it from poisoning my family. I don't even have to think about whether or not the power will come on tonight, or the water for my shower will be available tomorrow morning.
My son, who used to live in Africa, jokingly calls these first world problems. I find little humor in that as he grew up for four  years with third world problems, but can't remember them.
Even if I look around at my own community, I don't have to wonder if my kids are going to be able to take off their coats when they come home from school in order to stay warm. I don't think about whether or not my family will sleep in a shelter or the back of our car tonight. I don't look at all the food in the lunch room garbage at the elementary school and figure out if I can sneak some home before the waste company comes to empty the dumpster. These are real world problems, in our communities. Real world problems that won't go away after Thanksgiving is over.
At our house we participate in a thanksgiving every night after we say our family prayers. We do what we call our 'gratefuls'. Each of us in turn thinks of one thing we can be grateful for that day. My boys have all gone through a period of time where they've said things like-'I'm grateful tomorrow is Saturday.' or 'I'm grateful I am the smartest kid in my class'. Sometimes they are kidding, sometimes they are just plain ungrateful. doing this every night helps the whole family keep in mind how good we have it and how blessed we are to be together, live here in the U.S. and have God taking care of us every single day.
For thanksgiving this year, don't forget to be grateful for everything you have and have been given. Even if it's not everything you want. Make a habit of it until the only being not being grateful for being present at Thanksgiving is the Turkey!