ZenGnostica has been a little quiet as of late. I have been preparing to relaunch and refocus in the new year. However, I could not let the holidays pass without doing something worthy of their spirit and meaning. Instead of a long rant on what Thanksgiving and Christmas mean to me and what I hope it means for you, I thought I would instead issue more of a challenge to action.
In Macbeth, Shakespeare wrote, “Words to the heat of deeds too cold breath gives.” In other words, we can talk a thing to death, but unless we act on our words, they are nothing but wasted breath. Holidays and their meanings are just such an example. We can talk about warm feelings, peace, love, and brotherhood all we want. But if we never act to make them reality, they stay just words – the stuff of dreams.
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving in America. A day for family, friends, over indulgent eating . . . and ostensibly for giving thanks for the many good things we have experienced over the year. I fear that this message of gratitude is often lost among the celebrations, full tables, and eventual ramp up to the commercialism of Christmas. It is but a month of days that separates Thanksgiving from Christmas. For many, it is a non-stop party. Celebrate, we should! We must also not lose site of the meanings of these holidays. The best way to keep the message front and center is to act upon it. That is my challenge to each of you, my friends. Let’s all do something real, something positive together.
The Giving Thanks Daily Challenge 2010:
Between November 25 and December 25, can you name just one thing each day for which you are thankful? It could be anything – a special moment, a good friend, a fun activity . . . ANYTHING! The key here is not just to think up something, but to share it with the world. How you ask? Well . . .
- Twitter: I am hoping that most of you will use Twitter. If you do not have an account, it is free and easy to create one. You get 140 characters to tell the world what you are thankful for. Start your entry with “#Thanksbe”. I have created an archive that will collect all tweets with that tag. We will be able to look back on Christmas and see what everyone has been sharing.
- Facebook: Though I cannot archive Facebook posts, FB is another great option for sharing your daily thanks. Simply start your status entry with “Thanksbe” and tell what you are thankful for that day.
This challenge should be easy and fun. It does not take much time to write a sentence or two each day. You do not have to be American or Christian either. Just ignore the holidays and stick to the calendar dates. Remember, your first entry shold be on November 25 and your last one on December 25.
Me, I am thankful for awesome family and friends. I will be even more thankful if you could all join me in this challenge!
Happy Holidays!
- John, the ZenGnostic
“The jewel of the soul is priceless, and yet it is being squandered like this, in exchange for a mere shell.”
