The times have been tough. People are working harder, making less and paying more. Added to the economic desperation and uncertainties were human negligence and Mother Nature’s fury (gusty winds 70 mph). Many unfortunate victims of the Sylmar area of northern Los Angeles have lost everything they owned. Four hundred forty-eight mobile homes in Oakridge Mobile Home Park were destroyed.

It was sad to watch on the news an 84-year-old sitting in devastation with her wedding album and her husband’s ashes, the two items she fled with while escaping from the fire.

More than 800 houses, mobile homes and apartments were destroyed. In addition to 10,000 acres in the Sylmar area, fires blackened more than 3,500 acres, from Santa Barbara to Los Angeles and counties to the east. Seems like people there are drowning in a hopeless situation and there isn’t much to be thankful for.

Giving thanks in tough times and finding gratitude amid hardship are not easy. Some have lost their homes in foreclosures; some have lost their jobs; some have been laid off; while others have watched their retirement savings go down the drain and fear for their savings. People are feeling overly stressed and rather sick; however, getting ill at a time like this is perilous; to suffer from illness without health insurance is frightening.

However, despite the tough times, we watch on TV and hear many expressing their gratitude for just being alive. It’s the American spirit to overcome challenges, create great achievements and enjoy prosperity. Thanksgiving is a yearly tradition when we pause to appreciate the “bountiful harvest” we reaped. Thanksgiving Day is an occasion for family and friends to gather to give thanks for the blessings of the past year and to share traditional meals. After all, to most the word Thanksgiving conjures up images of turkey dinner, pumpkin pie and watching football with family and friends.

Giving thanks is viewed as a spiritual reaction to the benefits received.

Giving thanks through prayers is an act of communication by humans with the divine.

The theme of Thanksgiving has always been peace and plenty, health and happiness. We should make a habit of living in the moment and learning to appreciate what we have. We should learn to rejoice gratefully in God’s blessings and take time to thank Him each day. The only solutions at times like these are avoiding stress and seeking comfort in faith, family and friends.

It’s scientifically proved that being grateful by nature or learning how to be grateful can actually be good for our health. Grateful people admit that they have more energy. They’re more enthusiastic, have fewer aches and pains, sleep better, get more exercise, have lower blood pressure and are more well-liked by others. Gratitude seems to energize and elevate people.

We should make a habit of writing down each night before going to bed five things for which we are grateful and then read the writing next morning before the start of our new day. It definitely will help us to start our day in a cheerful mood and on a positive note so that we’d look forward to making your day a success.

A key is we should learn to count our every little perk and be thankful for all the wonderful things we have received from the Lord Almighty. I concur with the late Rev. Norman Vincent Peale, who wrote, ‘’Cultivate your blessings with a grateful heart. Then watch them grow!” Maybe this year’s Thanksgiving celebration returns to a simpler, less materialistic time.

May our Thanksgiving be healthy and happy and filled with peace and plenty.

Mandakini Hiremath is a Claflin instructor and coordinator of the university’s writing center.

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