Two Day Magazine

As I lay here in bed, fighting off what seems to be the onset of the flu, I'm thankful for my big, warm bed.

And all of these pillows.  And this thick, warm comforter.

The jobs my husband and I have allowed us to buy this big fancy bed.  The pillows and comforter were a wedding shower gift from my generous cousins.  I'm thankful for our jobs and I'm thankful to my cousins.

Instead, I should apparently be thankful to God.  

What's the connection, you ask?

On Thanksgiving Day, President Obama gave a quick address to the nation to remind us to be thankful for what we have, thankful to our families and for our health and jobs.  He also reminded us that we should give back to our communities by doing some volunteer work.  What he did not tell us to do, however, was to be thankful to God.  

This instantly riled up pundits, one in particular who claimed that when Americans sit down to Thanksgiving dinner, they thank God for what they have, not people. These pundits assume everyone is religious and should be giving thanks to God whether that is their beliefs or not. President Obama is the leader of the free world, a secular nation, and in fact, it would be inappropriate for him to request that we thank any deity. Religion and spirituality is a very personal thing, one that does not need the President’s endorsement to undertake.

In a time when our economy is stalled, the world markets are failing, more and more Americans are finding themselves homeless or able to put food on the table for their families and the ones of us who do have jobs feel like we're hanging on to them because of luck, the last thing I feel like doing is thanking God for what I have.

My job let's me buy things to make my life more comfortable so I thank my employers for taking a chance on me when they hired me.

Our families showered  my new husband and I with gifts when we got married last month so I thank them for their generosity.

My husband fixed the brakes on my car this weekend so I thank him for his skills because he saved me from spending hundreds of dollars at a mechanic.

My point is not to argue if there is or is not a god.  My point is that thanking a god and not the people in your life is impersonal and a slight to those do things for us and provide for us.  

If you believe in a higher power, I hope when when you sat down to dinner on Thursday that you also thanked the person who provided the meal for you because it wasn't God who stood on her or his feet all day to cook that delicious meal for you.  And it wasn't God who provided that family with the money to buy the food to make you that meal.

Pray to a higher power or don't.  Whatever you do, take President Obama's advice and thank the people in your life for what you have. Regardless of whether there’s a higher power out there, there are definitely people in your life who need appreciated, too. A little thanks goes a long way down here on earth, after all.

**********************************

twoday magazine wants to know: Did you thank the people in your life over this holiday weekend for all the wonderful things they do throughout the year? Share your thoughts on Facebook.

Do you think President Obama should have included "Thanking God" in his speech? Tweet @twodaymag your thoughts!