Publisher - November 2024

Photography by
Cassidy Dunn Photography

“Gratitude is tåhe wine for the soul.
Go on. Get drunk.”
— Rumi

I love Thanksgiving because it is a combination of two very heartfelt actions, thanks and giving. While Thanksgiving isn’t an exchange of gifts, it is an exchange of acknowledgement, connection, love, time, and appreciation—extra special things many of us tend to take for granted the rest of the year. The first Thanksgiving celebration was 403 years ago, and miraculously, we have managed to still hold giving thanks in high regard, even if only for a day.

Like many, I learned to say “please” and “thank you” as a wee tot; it was a minimum requirement by my mother when it came to manners and interacting with people—all people. As an adult, I have to say there are few things more precious than hearing a sweet baby voice say “pweez” and “tank ooh.” However, it hasn’t been until the last decade or so of my life that I’ve realized how important being thankful really is. Gratitude is an attitude that absolutely fills your soul to the point of bubbling over.

Being truly thankful is both a powerful state of mind and a powerful way to live. So much so, gratitude has been scientifically proven to have numerous health and lifestyle benefits. These perks include better sleep, improved relationships, reduced anger, increased self-confidence, and stronger resilience, just to name a few. However, with no scientific evidence, I have discovered that gratitude is the key to happiness and peace. Being grateful on purpose is an absolute superpower. It is the Holy Grail of life.

How can I be so sure? I’ve lived both ways, and gratefulness is the better option, by far. My experiences have taught me beyond any doubt that being abundantly thankful nourishes satisfaction and contentment. Being actively grateful is so powerful, it guarantees you always have enough, literally everything you need. It works because when you’re grateful, you don’t stumble through the days in a black hole of lack. You don’t feel like you’re missing out. In fact, you feel so full, you could burst! How cool is that?

On the flipside, being oblivious to the blessings that surround you every day embeds a vast void into your spirit that will never be full. Ungratefulness keeps you locked into a state of want and need, begging for more, more, more! Isn’t that the definition of misery?

To make a long story short, let’s just say I once read a quote that stopped me in my tracks: “What if you woke up tomorrow with only the things you gave thanks for today?” Great question. It jarred me, but only for a few minutes. But I remembered that quote when I learned my home had been destroyed in Hurricane Matthew. Alas, I did wake up with only the things I had given thanks for the day before—my kids, my dog, and a few paintings I had evacuated with. So, there I was—a living, breathing lesson in the midst of a giant storm that left me with little, yet became a beautiful blessing of plenty.

I got thankful real quick. I never focused on the loss. I kept my eye toward heaven, knew it would all be okay, and was humbled by the people, places and things that showed up out of nowhere at exactly the right time. In addition, I was going through divorce and about to be a single female homeowner of a 40-year-old house with an old HVAC system, an old roof, and other necessary repairs lurking in the very near future. Though it took throwing away almost everything in the house, 17 months, and six temporary moves, I was left with practically a new home once it was all said and done. How awesome is that?

I take nothing for granted anymore. I’m thankful for my friends, my family, my dog, my washer and dryer, my bed, my sheets, my roof, the fact I have two toilets, my whole house. I love living this way. I love the things I have. In doing so, I really don’t need anything. I’m content and at peace. It’s like I was blind, but now I can see.

Did you know gratitude and bitterness cannot exist in the same thought. Neither can gratitude and jealousy, disappointment, resentment, or greed. How powerful is it to know that when you choose gratitude, you are giving the boot to those negative emotions that reduce our quality of life. If your mind and heart is full of regret or envy, or if your days consist of moping, wallowing, stewing, throwing pity parties, or complaining, you have deserted your opportunity to be grateful. When you desert thankfulness, you also ostracize hope, happiness, confidence, resilience, fulfillment, success, contentment, peace and satisfaction, just to name a few, and that’s a sad way to live. You deserve better than that.

Grateful or ungrateful: It’s completely up to you, but I encourage you to choose grateful, after all it is Thanksgiving, and it certainly won’t hurt you in any way. To start, just walk around your house and see all your stuff with fresh eyes. Maybe you have trinkets you brought back from a trip, or wedding gifted flatware you still use daily. Perhaps you have a pet who cuddles with you or does its business extra fast, so you don’t have to stand outside forever. At the very least, I know you have running water, indoor plumbing, and more than likely, you have heat and air. There is always something to be grateful for! Then take it a step further and look at your people (your significant other, friends, family, children) with fresh loving eyes. Focus on their good qualities—their laugh, the inside jokes only you have with them, the way they help or show up for you, the fact they call home often, the way they make you smile, or maybe how safe you feel with them around. This is all good stuff that we lose sight of when we forget to be grateful.

You don’t need to have a hurricane topple giant pines through your home to learn this lesson. Gratitude is a fabulous way of life, and all you have to do is shift your focus and become aware. Look for the wonderful things that are all around you, and lo and behold, you won’t believe your stunning great fortune.

Don’t ever forget I’m thankful for you! Thank you for reading Pink Magazine; you have no idea how much it means to me. Happy Thanksgiving. Now let’s all be grateful and get this joyous holiday season started!

Think Pink,
Elizabeth Millen