The painting above, “The First Thanksgiving”, was created in 1621 by Jean Leon Gerome Ferris. And, while the painting may not be completely accurate, regarding the fashions of the day, it is representative of the sentiment. In 1621, the Pilgrims hunted with the native Americans and celebrated together for 3 days to give thanks for their first harvest at Plymouth Plantation. Squanto, a Patuxet Native American who resided with the Wampanoag tribe, taught the Pilgrims how to catch eel and grow corn and, knowing some English, served as an interpreter for them. Over the prior year, the Wampanoag leader, Massasoit, had helped the colonists during the first winter, when supplies they brought from England were insufficient. Then, after the colonists settled, farmed, and brought in their very first bountiful harvest, they all shared the rewards.
This image shows a happy time between many people of very different beliefs and cultures. It reminds us that it is possible to work together, no matter how different our beliefs, no matter how diverse our backgrounds, as long as mutual respect is present. Thanksgiving often brings to mind turkey, football, and getting together with family we may not have seen in a while. Whether or not you like each of these is beside the point. Thanksgiving isn’t about the first two, really. It does involve the third one, family. But, is that all it is?
Thanksgiving should be been about reflection and forgiveness, remembrance and thanks. Each of us would benefit from taking time to stop thinking about work, chores, needs, wants, money, and things that make us angry. It’s healthy to focus on others and to be thankful in spirit. It’s time to press the pause button, stop talking, stop complaining, stop griping, and get quiet.
Then, when you’re nice and quiet, start brainstorming about everything going right in your life, things you’ve done well, things that turned out in your favor, things you’re proud of, things that could be much worse but aren’t, and situations where you’re better off than you were yesterday. Make note of them. And don’t just focus on yourself. Make sure to include being thankful for the ways you’ve been able to help others.
As an interesting fact, many highly successful people start their day with a period of reflection. At this time, they may look at a list of goals and accomplishments. It’s important to see both because you should see how far you’ve come, as well as where you want to go. You may be surprised how far you’ve progressed.
This Thanksgiving, take time to put everything else aside and just focus, for 30 minutes, on the things you’re happy about, big and small.
You’ll be surprised about two things:
1. how hard it is to do for 30 minutes
2. how much you actually have to be thankful for
From the Team at Empower Brokerage, we are thankful that we can provide our all to you, that we have a wonderful group of dedicated people to work with, and that our company is helping agents in ways few, if any, other companies have endeavored to help.
It’s gratifying to know that all of our hard work is paying off.
If you like, print these gratitude cards for you and your guests. Encourage everyone to take a few minutes and make some notes. It will set the tone for the whole day:
Have a safe and wonderful Thanksgiving.
Print these gratitude cards for you and your guests:
Agents
We hope that this information on Thanksgiving’s history is interesting to you.
Empower Brokerage is dedicated to helping you make informed decisions about your health and finances. Whether it’s through webinar training, one-on-one calls, seminars, or marketing plans, we want you to be successful!
Give us a call at 888-539-1633 or leave a comment below if you have any questions.
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