Thanksgiving is once again upon us. I believe I have heard that this is the busiest travel holiday of the year. Everyone struggles to return to the bosoms of their families to celebrate this peculiarly American holiday. Once the trip has been accomplished and everyone is snuggly nestled in the familial arms of their childhoods, what next? We sometimes pause to spend a few moments reflecting on our blessings and the things for which we are thankful. We remember the promotion we received; the new spouse who has made our lives complete; the new baby that is the delight of our hearts. But, what about the other events that occurred during the year? Do we offer thanksgiving for losing the job we felt was ours for life? How about the mate who challenges every concept we have about marriage? And, what of the baby we brought home who is developing in a very different way or not developing at all? Do we give thanks for those things too … Can we give thanks for those things too?

This is a good time to think about those questions. But another question must first be answered. Why would we want to give thanks for the difficult times in life? Actually, there are many answers to that question. Here are a few.

1. We can learn equally important lessons from trials and tribulations as we learn from blessings. Trials tend to make us re-focus our lives. During troubled times we are forced to focus on the prevailing problem with the intent of identifying a solution and a desired state of being. In order to arrive at that point, we generally have to expand our minds and our points of view to examine all the options open to us.

2. Trials force us to examine our values and determine their legitimacy. Frequently we find some flaws in the values upon which we have built our lives. Even more interesting is the fact that frequently we find we have been living our lives based on values that we do not truly embrace.

3. Trials help us grow. On life's journey we cannot successfully move to the next stage of life until we overcome certain barriers that exist in our present stage of life. Life is a series of one developmental opportunity after another. Just as on a physical level we had to crawl before we could walk, so too must be develop one step at a time emotionally, psychologically and spiritually.

So, as you sit down to enjoy that ritualistic homage to heartburn that is Thanksgiving Dinner, remember to give thanks for all things in your life … the easy times and the difficult times. And, always bear in mind that the object in life is to continually "Grow Where You Are Planted".