There’s more to Thanksgiving than turkey – how being grateful can transform your life

Thanksgiving is my favourite holiday. Fabulous food, family, friends, and American football: that’s the makings of a wonderful day and life, if you can keep the energy going.

It all starts with having gratitude. Sometimes that can be a challenge, but if you can just be grateful for where you are at the moment, then you have what you need to move your life forward.

Gratitude is a way of life, not something that you think about once a year. If you weave an attitude of gratitude into your thinking-and-feeling process, your life will get better. People who start writing down three things for which they’re grateful and doing this every day usually feel more joy within two weeks. Try it.

Remember the good, and don’t let the bad haunt you. Many of us have been traumatised in one way or another, and it can get in the way of allowing you to appreciate life. You need to learn that when uncomfortable memories enter, you can switch to something positive, and that this action will train your brain to have fewer and fewer negative thoughts.

Always give a little more than you get and you will never disappoint anyone or yourself. They say that sharing is caring, and I can’t not care. From homeless people to homeless animals, I have to be involved in helping, one way or another. Those people who put their own Thanksgiving aside and help those in need, or who have Thanksgiving guests who would otherwise have nowhere to go, really embrace the true meaning of the holiday.

Time with friends and family is what we work so hard for, and this holiday is all about family and friends. I truly believe that time is the most precious thing in the world, and I love spending as much of it in a loving environment. Having my peeps around me makes everything OK.