I heard that yesterday, Thanksgiving Day, the word thankful was tweeted out more than 3.8 million times. Not at our house, at least for a few hours last night, it was only spoken.
How about at your home?
On Wednesday I wrote the blog post about how I planned for a phone-free Thanksgiving, (http://markbrodinsky.com/350ghost-of-thanksgiving-past-its-just-about-life/), at least from the time the family hit the door, until after dessert. I challenged others to do the same. Later that day and even yesterday, I was sent some screen shots of that blog post being shared and others commenting they were going to do the same. I hope it worked for you.
I can tell you under our roof, it worked like a charm.
The pictures below speak the words which no one had to go to their smartphone, (nor were they allowed), to send out on Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, or Twitter. Instead there was real-time conversation, connection, laughter and emotion. For three hours plus, we disconnected from the rest of the world and focused in on our foundation, our family. It was amazing to witness, especially my girls and my nieces sitting around – actually talking – without the every-two-second-peek at the portable drug they seem to hold in their hands nearly every free second of the day.
And as usual once dinner was ready to be served there was the time for reflection on what matters most to us. The tradition of going around the table to speak in gratitude about who and what is important to you, whether it was from this past year, or anytime, or anything on your mind for that matter, has been going on since the girls were born. Gratitude is the attitude that changes everything.
For a few hours it was like a trip back in time – but the way the holiday should be, especially this one, where family is the focus, as well as the food – and for a little while the rest of the world, while hopefully just as grateful – was a little bit further away.
Until next time, thanks for taking the time.
Mark
Mark Brodinsky, Author, Blogger, Financial Services
The #1 Amazon Best-Seller: It Takes 2. Surviving Breast Cancer: A Spouse’s Story
(http://www.spouses-story.com/)
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