Thanksgiving Special: Gratitude on a Deeper Level
By Chloe Cochran
When I think about Thanksgiving, I’m reminded of the basic things that any individual should be thankful for; a support system, a roof over my head, and food to keep me nourished. But, although we should still be thankful for those things, they’re just surface level things to be grateful for. Right?
Coming up on this year’s Thanksgiving, the thought of surface level gratitude has been on my mind a lot. What is surface level gratitude (besides something I made up)? It’s the act of being grateful at the simplest level. It isn’t bad to be thankful for surface level things! However, don’t we get what we give? (At least that’s my philosophy on life.)
Thankfulness and kindness go hand-in-hand. Without kindness, it’s hard to be appreciative of the things around us. In turn, it’s hard for us to be appreciative towards our blessings when we have a negative attitude.
In today’s society, there are a lot of things to be thankful for. Yet, there are a lot of bitter people in the world. There are a lot of individuals who harden up after one inconvenience, or get upset at “small” things. While this holiday is about giving thanks for the things we’re grateful for, it’s also about showing gratitude to those who need it most. When you show gratitude on a deeper level, you’re opening yourself up to be vulnerable with your appreciation. In turn, that gratitude is reciprocated differently; the people around you feel noticed, the food you eat feels earned (instead of expected), and you feel appreciative of the shelter you’re under.
The day before Thanksgiving, a questionnaire was sent out to both our writers and our social media account followers with the hopes of gaining a new perspective on the concepts of Thanksgiving. While some answers were funny, there were others that reached a deeper level of gratitude. Below are some of the answers that reached that deeper level.
What are you thankful for this year?
Everything. From the roof I’m under, to my wonderful wife, I’m thankful for all of it.
My family, music, and the amazing opportunity to teach at Southern Virginia.
Phone calls from my family and laughing with my friends until we cry.
What’s something you believe others should be thankful for, but aren’t?
Your struggles. They make you tougher, and can be a blessing to you and others.
Southern Vriginia staff and faculty, they do so much for us!
Our country. It’s still more free than so many other places.
How do you show others that you’re grateful?
By paying it forward and letting others know that I appreciate them deeply.
Hand written notes are an amazing way to express gratitude!
Reciprocating kindness.
How do you want to be shown gratitude?
Acknowledgment (the bar is low).
How will you show gratitude this year?
Acting with care and kindness to repay the attention and thoughts generated towards me.
As I read all of the responses from the questionnaire, I’m thankful to be surrounded by humble individuals who took the time to respond to the simple questions. Their responses (while not all were included) represented the underlying theme of this Thanksgiving article; to be thankful on an intimate level, not just the surface.
This Thanksgiving, do something outside of your comfort zone to show gratitude to someone who deserves it (brownie points if you write to multiple individuals). Gratitude, with kindness, can change someone’s mindset from negative to positive and even change your own attitude (remember, reciprocate to others what you would want). I’m thankful for all of my amazing writers at The Herald, along with our editors and advisor, for continually pushing their limits to make our newspaper the best it can be. And, of course, thank you readers for reading and appreciating our work!
