My mentor, the late Grady Nutt, wrote a chapter in a book of verse called, “ThanksLiving.” I have always loved that play on a phrase. In other words, it shouldn’t just be about giving thanks — it should be about living thankfully.

Grady described “thanksliving” in part as: “An attitude that finds treasure in the plowed field of routine.”

Isn’t it interesting that we primarily express our gratitude for the big things in life — our family, our friends, our career success. Seldom do we announce our application for the “plowed field of routine” in our lives…even though that’s where we spend the vast majority of our time.

Here in the United States, the coming week brings our annual Thanksgiving holiday. Even when our nation is so politically divided as it is today, we will still stop to express our blessings. (As we should…)

Yet, every year at this time I’m also reminded of the wisdom of my dear, departed friend who was the Obi-Wan-sage to my young, ambitious Skywalker-speaker of long ago. Grady often remarked that I should slow down and enjoy the journey to success. If you miss the small stuff in life, he used to remind me, the big stuff will not have the meaning that it should.

We have all probably lost someone special in our lives. It presents us with a unique understanding of the value of a single day, a moment in time. As Warren Zevon was dying of cancer, he said to David Letterman, “Enjoy every sandwich.” Seize the value and worth of every single moment. It’s no coincidence that my friends in the band Diamond Rio had one of their biggest hits with a song titled, “One More Day.”

As we celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday this week, let’s do it with the spirit of ThanksLiving. And, let’s not make it a one-day affair. Why not try to live that way…every day?

As Grady Nutt wrote, ThanksLiving is an approach that, “holds a cup to the water of life…and drinks the mystery of ‘being’ with zest.”