The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.

The Art Of Being Grateful

Dessa Rodeffer , Quill Publisher/Owner

November 27, 2019

If you have found yourself this Thanksgiving in a grumpy mood, maybe you have been focusing on all the bad that has come along in your life instead focusing on all that is right.

Being a grump not only makes you miserable, but it makes everyone else around you miserable, too. Grumpiness is contagious so if people are grumpy around you, your attitude just probably has something to do with it.

I am drawn to people who are happy, fun, and uplifting-people who are grateful for what they have and for the job they have been given, or just grateful for another day and I leave feeling better about myself and the world.

Complimenting and thanking people for the things they do is one way of showing gratefulness and it brings a smile. For instance, if someone is fixing your meals of which you are doing nothing to help with, show some appreciation. They are trying to do their best and some things may be out of their control.

Don't compare people as we all are different. God made us that way for a reason. We each have strengths and weaknesses in some area, so lighten up! Try to be a peacemaker, a helper, a positive person. Smile and laugh more, try singing or at least humming. Make a list of all the things you are grateful for, then make each person you meet feel appreciated.

Many feel lonely around the holidays, missing loved ones who no longer can come home for the holidays or who have passed away.

The art of being thankful for those people and listing all the things they meant to you may make the loneliness not so painful if you turn it into thanksgiving for their lives and all the things they brought to you while they were here.

We all will be called home someday, some at a much too young age, some at old age, some before their lives even begin. We must be grateful for each life, each memory, and thank the Lord for that gift.

If we can look at other people as special creations by God with their own special gifts and personality to offer the world, we can show respect for their unique individuality and show kindness and appreciation for them.

If we go out of our way to make them feel special in some way, pretty soon our focus is off of ourselves, our loneliness disappears as we are busy appreciating those around us and as we try to work toward making them feel special.

Pretty soon we find more and more things to be thankful for, like all the opportunities we have to make someone's day better.

Start by putting your cell phones on silent, looking people in the eye and asking them about their day, their family, and what were some of their favorite holiday or vacation times. It may have been a long time since someone just sat down and asked about their family or life.

You may think you have nothing to give, but if you have a smile and a listening ear, you have everything you need to bring joy to a hurting world

I received a letter from a Blandinsville subscriber that made my day this week.

I do not know him, but in his note to me he wrote the following:

"I read the outstanding 'good news' spotlight article about a great customer of ours".

He asked permission to reprint the article we had on Brad Hunt in his company's newsletter and then went on to say:

"This is the reason that we became recent subscribers and gifted a subscription to my parents. I love the good news, conservative news, etc. in a concise form that I can read easily and walk away feeling good about what I read."

A nice letter to someone who has helped you, the community, or our nation-such as a soldier or veteran, the owner of a business you have shopped at, the police or firemen, or ambulance drivers, the volunteers or workers, board members, school teachers, elevator operators are a few of the many people that make our community a great place to live. Respecting and thanking them is a great morale builder. The more positive we are, the more good character we build. This Thanksgiving let's truly practice the art of giving thanks for all we have.

BE A FRIEND

by Edgar Guest

Be a friend. You don't need money; Just a disposition sunny; Just the wish to help another Get along some way or other; Just a kindly hand extended out to one who's unbefriended; Just the will to give or lend, this will make you someone's friend.

Be a friend. You don't need glory. Friendship is a simple story. Pass by triflling errors blindly, gaze on honest effort kindly, cheer the youth who's bravely trying, pity him who's sadly sighing; just a little labor spend, on the duties of a friend.

Be a friend. The pay is bigger (Though not written by a figure) Than is earned by people clever In what's merely self-endeavor. You'll have friends instead of neighbors for the profits of your labors; You'll be richer in the end than a prince, if you're a friend.