Thankful

As we approach thanksgiving we begin being thankful, and speaking our words of thankfulness, as I've seen many people do on Facebook and I keep asking myself why it takes Thanksgiving for people to start voicing what they are thankful for, and why people tend to only show appreciation for the things in their life during this time. I was raised to use manners, yes ma'am,no ma'am, yessir and no sir, to always say please and thank you, and to always remind those around me how much I appreciate what they do for me big or small. What do we teach our children if we do not do this all 12 months? Are we teaching our children that it is ok to forgo being appreciative and humble the other 11 months?? Every day of every month of every year we as the human people should strive to thank and show appreciation to those around us, we should strive to eliminate our negativity, hatred and disdain for others. My children are being raised to say thank you, we are always trying to donate what/when/where we can....even if its only our time, we do not have much money but my children take pride in what they do for others. We are on the eve so to speak of adopting our angel, we do this every year, it shows my children the gift of giving, the "fullness" you feel from helping someone in need. They each get a little budget and are allowed to purchase something for the child in need. I am amazed when, after reading what the child needs, my daughter will be so excited to go buy for our family angel. She is the first to be taken back by the fact that the child wants/needs socks and underwear and she always try's to give her toys away bc the angel doesn't have many.... We work so hard to teach our children, the future leaders of the country, these life forms we've been blessed with from God how to live unconditionally and give as much as they can that it breaks my heart to see people reserve their appreciation and thankfulness of others for once a year. I have been blessed in my life to have two loving parents, who are not perfect, they have faults and learn from their mistakes, they have taught me that a mistake isn't the end if the world, as long as you learn from it and strive to do better you are working towards whatever goal you have... Setbacks do not destroy your goal, sometimes you have to find a new road to continue in your journey. I am blessed with 4 amazing siblings, who also have faults, and make mistakes. And one who is no longer on the earth with me physically but who is always in my heart and a part of my life. I have my relationship with God, and I know he forgives my faults and errors and loves me unconditionally as he wants us to do with others. I have the love of a wonderful man, he sees thru my faults, my pain and my struggles and knows what's inside of my heart, he helps me be the best person I can be, he pushes me to be the best I can and helps me when I feel I'm either not doing enough or I feel I've fallen short. I have been blessed with two wonderful children, who I am trying to raise to the best of my ability and who are also helping me grow, I'm learning how to be a mother and how to deal with the things life throws at us. And I have been blessed with some very important, true, real, friends. These friends have seen me at my lowest, seen me be destructive of my own life and have continued to stay by my side, we have all had a windy road full of ups and downs but in the end on speaking terms or not I know that I can count on them.... And so today, as well as every day of every month, of every year I'm grateful, appreciative and humble for all of the blessings and gifts in my life. I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday.