We've heard the story of the pilgrims and how they landed in Plymouth Harbor on December 12, 1620 after a 66 day voyage across the Atlantic Ocean. We've learned about the hardship they went through those first winters in New England. Half the pilgrims died that first year. And they created the first Thanksgiving. Later, President Lincoln proclaimed the last Thursday of every November to be an annual national day of Thanksgiving in the United States. These same pilgrims gave thanks to God despite the many hardships they endured, and that pioneer spirit of hard work and thankfulness led to great successes in the years that followed.

As I write, many people in the United States and Americans around the world are just finishing their Thanksgiving Dinner. I'm a Canadian and we had our Thanksgiving in October. It is a day of feasting and being with family. Sometimes the thanksgiving part is forgotten, but it's good to have that annual reminder of the importance of being grateful for the many blessings we have and the individual and national freedoms we enjoy. In our business of making money from home we can be thankful for many things. Here are a few of them:

Thankful for an opportunity to take initiative and action

There are people without jobs who are cold and hungry. I lived overseas and I could tell of the suffering I have seen, when having a little bread and tea at Christmas is a feast and some don't have even that. Here we are in the comfort of our homes, no matter whether it is a basement apartment or a mansion, with a chance to get on our computers, and work hard at the opportunity we have right where we are.

Thanks for being with our families

One of the reasons some of you have decided to make money from home is to be with your children and not have to go out to work leaving your children with relatives or even strangers. It is a choice you were able to make and for which you are thankful.

Being grateful makes us better people

Some of the happiest people I know were always thankful and grateful for even the smallest kindnesses shown to them. They radiate joy despite the circumstances of their lives. Yes, making money is important and we need to do it and we are thankful. But it is only a means to achieving our goals in life and making life better. I recently attended the funerals of two women (one was 101 years old with many grandchildren and 25 great grandchildren). Both of them had spiritual riches that couldn't be counted in dollars and cents. They had earned the love and respect of hundreds of people and a left a rich legacy of family members who all carry on the tradition of gratitude and service. That's something to be thankful for.

So, as another Thanksgiving Day has ended, may our hearts be perpetually happy and thankful for the many blessings that come our way and may that thankfulness spill over into our relationships and into the positive attitude we can bring to our home business and our homes. I remember a little song we sing sometimes and the essence of it is this: when things are tough, count your blessings, name them one by one. So let's do that.