Thanksgiving Is Everyday

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Here in the United States, the fourth Thursday in November is the day set aside for the holiday called Thanksgiving.  Popular and generally accepted history has the first Thanksgiving (harvest) celebration taking place in Plymouth Massachusetts in 1621.  The Pilgrims, here from their native UK celebrated the harvest.  

Some native Virginians will dispute that claim as there is historical documentation that an official "Thanksgiving" was held at the Berkeley Plantation along the James River in Virginia just over a year prior to the Pilgrims—1620.  That Thanksgiving was about prayer and being thankful for a safe arrival in the Colonies.  I'll let historians decide who did what and when.  

All I know is that I am thankful and grateful every day of the year and not on just this particular day. Why?  More blessings have been bestowed upon me than I have ever possibly deserved.  I've had a very good life.  I have no reason to complain about anything.  I've risen to the top of my profession—twice!  I have a wonderful family, friends who would do just about anything for me when needed, pretty good health, clear mind and am financially secure for the rest of my wife's and my years here on this planet.  After all, I can pretty much buy the camera and lenses that I want.  (Good thing my wants are modest!)  Many can't say any of these things.  Thankful and grateful, yes, that is what I am.

We all should be thankful for what we have and not worry about what we want or don't have.  In my career as a police officer rising to police chief, I encountered many who have never had anything, and I mean they had literally nothing—for more than one generation.  Each time I think about something I would like to have but can't afford, my mind harkens back to those I've encountered that didn't know where their next meal would come from.  I think about how fortunate my children have been to have loving parents and gave them everything they needed, not everything they necessarily wanted.  I've seen many families that don't even get what they needed for their children's health and well-being.  Yes, I'm thankful and grateful every single day of my life.

Let me be clear, my success and blessings didn't come my way by accident.  I worked my butt off for over 40 years.  Self-reliance is one of my highest values.  I don't ask anyone for anything and, if someone does something for me, I consider it a gift.  No one owes me anything.  The government doesn't owe me anything.  The world doesn't owe me anything.  Everything my wife and I have is because we relied on hard work, planning and common sense—good decision making.  Let me say it again.  No one owes us anything nor did we ever ask anyone for anything.  Rely only on yourself.

Most of the time I had a part-time job along with my full time job.  A lot of that was in photography but a lot of it wasn't.  I worked nights, weekends, during hurricanes and seldom took vacations.  I started planning my retirement strategy when I was 22 years old.  If you don't know where you are going in life, you have no idea as to where you will end up.  Yes, blessings and luck came my way.  But I believe that success is a product of preparation meeting opportunity.  If an opportunity to better your situation arises and you aren't prepared, someone else will seize that opportunity.

But in the end, I've been blessed more than I have ever deserved and I know it.  If you have been blessed with success, health, family, friends and the like, it is now time to give back to help others achieve their goals and dreams.  Since this is a photography oriented blog, I suggest you do as I do—help as many other young, passionate photographers get better and help them achieve greater photographic success.  Teach them everything you know and share your wealth of knowledge so they can realize the same pleasure that you have with your photography.

Happy Thanksgiving to each and every one of you reading this.  May God Bless You as he has me.

Thanks for looking. Enjoy!

Dennis A. Mook 

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