Several years ago, I learned of an organization called Charity Water.
It’s a non-profit that brings clean and safe drinking water to people in developing countries.
I was overwhelmed by the stories of women and children who had to walk miles multiple times a day to gather water from a dirty source and carry it back to their homes.
This daily process consumes so much of their time and energy that they cannot be educated or bring in income which keeps them trapped in a cycle of poverty.
Seven hundred eighty-five million people lack basic access to clean and safe drinking water. Charity Water is on a mission to end this water crisis by working with local partners to fund water, sanitation, and hygiene programs for rural communities worldwide.
Access to safe drinking water changes lives.
Children can attend school. Women can create businesses and earn income.
Families and communities are healthier, stronger, and more developed.
The stories of hardship brought me to tears, and the stories of overcoming that hardship with something as basic as clean water brought me to even more tears.
Clean water changed their lives.
It also changed mine.
It changed the way I see the world.
It opened my eyes to how much I take for granted.
All I have to do is turn on a faucet, and I have access to as much water as I want.
Do you realize how extraordinary it is to much of the world that we can fill up a bathtub with water and just soak in it for comfort?!
I didn’t.
But when I did, I saw the many other things that I take for granted.
Like when my children were sick, and I had access to a doctor and antibiotics.
As their mother, I witnessed their discomfort over a few days.
Many mothers watch their children die.
I have always had enough to eat, shoes on my feet, and shelter over my head.
Not everyone can say that.
I don’t bring this up to create guilt but to deepen gratitude and thanksgiving.
Sometimes it’s hard to remember that we have so much to be grateful for.
Often we focus on what we don’t have.
Of course, that’s only human, but when you do, remind yourself that you have clean drinking water and shift into thanksgiving and abundance.
This has become a daily practice for me and keeps my mindset in peace and abundance, which contributes to living a life of purpose, passion, and peace.
Another way to practice thanksgiving is by literally giving.
Take some time out from focusing on what’s going wrong in the world and look for the multitude of ways people are doing good.
I encourage you to consider giving to an organization that is changing the world.
It’s good for you, good for them, and good for the world.
Have a Happy Thanksgiving, and remember, giving thanks makes us happy.