Thank you notes.
It's November. Month of getting an extra hour of sleep, the time you really need to start wearing scarves and drinking tea to stay warm, and my favorite holiday: Thanksgiving.
It is also a month of thankful posts on Facebook. Some people (guilty party of one) seem to get a little tired of these, feeling as if it's overdone or that you don't need to know what every person is thankful for every second of the day.... but really, we do.
Here's why: we need to remember it's not about us. We need to stop scoffing at thankfulness and start living it. And for some, the best way to communicate their thankfulness is through social media. That's ok. And it's also ok if it's not your personal style of self expression. But instead of hating on another's, why not find your own style of thankfulness?
Facebook is not mine. My best style of self-expression (second only to dance) is hand-written word.
I love writing letters on fresh pieces of lined paper. I'm constantly leaving hidden notes for loved ones on post-its or on any scrap of paper I can find, shoving them under windshield wipers or behind medicine cabinet doors. I still have a stack of post-its from college my best friend and I wrote to each other on a daily basis.
If you know me well, you know that I am highly attached to my Netflix and the most TV I watch is pretty limited to reruns of The Gilmore Girls (ABC Family weekdays 11-12pm and 12-1pm!), the Food Network (Pioneer Woman's #1 fan), and Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. Every Friday night, Jimmy Fallon wraps up his week by writing Thank You notes. Here's a good one:
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VM2OAiGO2Q[/embed]
(I found the pear pun particularly enjoyable =) )
I look forward to these segments every week for their silliness, yes, but as I was thinking about thankfulness the past two days, I began thinking about thank you notes.
So, for November, I've decided on one thank you note a day, however brief or long. I know this isn't anything revolutionary, I don't really care if anyone but the person, people, or thing it is written to actually reads it. I only care that I am choosing to engage in the practice of thankfulness and not shy away from it or run from it's "overdoneness."
I'll be handwriting them and mailing them, and probably posting them here too.
We have so much to be thankful for. If you disagree or are pulling away right now, I challenge you to ignore the part of you trying to tell you to do so. Fight harder to remember it's not about you. We are never alone on our journey. And you must read 1000 gifts by Ann Voskamp. It'll change you, I promise you this. And if you agree, don't just be thankful in the way everyone else is being thankful, be thankful in the best way you know how.