Dear Annie: This day gives us something rare: a reason to pause, look around and feel grateful.

DEAR READERS: Thanksgiving has a way of sneaking up on us, doesn’t it? One minute we’re rushing through the year, taking the kids to games and meeting deadlines, and the next we’re standing over turkey and wondering how the year flew by so fast. But beneath the noise of the dinner table and all the pie crusts, this day gives us something rare: a reason to pause, look around and feel grateful. Life isn’t perfect, but it’s life , and we’re all blessed to live it.

The poet Rumi once said, “Wear gratitude like a cloak and it will feed every corner of your life.” I like that image because it suggests gratitude isn’t something we express once a year; it’s something we live in. It keeps us warm when life feels cold, and it reminds us that grace often shows up in small, unremarkable ways.

Marc