It is of course Thanksgiving in the USA today, and that is one of the most important holidays of the year. It is my favourite American holiday, because it serves to remind us all of the importance of being grateful in our lives.

I’ve been crazy busy today so this won’t be a long post, but it is worth remembering that true happiness lies in simply being grateful for what you have.

There is a legendary story concerning one of the ancient Cynics, a man named Diogenes of Sinope. There are many variations of this tale, but as usual Plutarch probably tells it best. The great historian speaks of how Alexander the Great, at the height of his conquest of all of Greece, went to meet the old philosopher to show him respect and pay homage to his wisdom. He found the man sunbathing in a street and told him who he was and what he had accomplished.

He then said to Diogenes that he would grant the man anything that he wished for – anything at all that was in his power to give.

Diogenes looked the younger man up and down and asked, “Anything at all?”. The great Macedonian conqueror, the man who would make the entire known world tremble upon hearing his name, nodded and smiled.

The old man then said, “Well… then stand out of my light”.

And that was all that he needed in order to be happy.

Now, most of us are certainly not going to be satisfied with just a bit of sunshine and good weather. But that story serves to remind us all of how important it is to be happy and grateful for the things that we have.

The most bitter and unhappy people that you will ever meet are those consumed with envy for the things that they do not have and will never achieve. By contrast, the happiest and healthiest people you will ever meet are always the ones who remember what they have – and what they have suffered to get those things.

The early Pilgrims understood this lesson very well. They had to. When they first arrived in the New World, they were as helpless as children because they did not know how to grow food in that climate and did not understand which crops to grow according to what seasons. They made their own problems much worse by adopting a basically Communist, Utopian, purely deterministic vision of how a society should operate – it was literally based on the notion that every man should contribute to the collective good, so that the colony would operate “from each according to his ability, to each according to his need”.

It didn’t take long before the early settlers were starving and in disarray. That’s what Communism does. It breeds resentment, envy, and greed – while pretending to solve those same problems.

It was only when a certain Native American named Tisquantum – a former slave to the English and convert to Christianity – came along, speaking English and sympathetic to the plight of the new arrivals, that their fortunes really began to turn around. They were profoundly grateful for that help, and that tradition of gratitude has endured ever since.

Today, be grateful for what you have, because believe me when I tell you that it can all be taken from you in an instant. If that does happen to you, remember to show gratitude to those who stand by your side when the hard times come – because those hard times will test you to your very core, and will show you who is truly with you. You’re going to find out in a very big hurry that those whom you counted as your closest friends and allies, are often the first to desert you when things get rough.

Adversity does wonders for a man, but the lessons that it teaches are deeply unpleasant and painful. And yet, you should be grateful for that too, because only through that pain can you improve and make progress.

Finally, for those of you fortunate enough to be with your families this day, peace be upon you and all of yours through my Lord and King, Jesus Christ, and through His Heavenly Father. May God’s blessings and love shine down upon you, and may you enjoy a very happy, hearty, and loving Thanksgiving filled with enormous amounts of delicious food, far too much drink, and the very best of good company.