In Canada, we celebrate Thanksgiving a little earlier than our American friends but we do it much the same, with family, food, and football. But there is one other thing, we Canadians also do yardwork!
Last week, I was attending Alan Weiss’s “Thought Leadership” conference in West Palm Beach, Florida, when Hurricane Matthew approached the coast.
Upon the first hurricane warnings on Tuesday, I booked an earlier flight home and left on Wednesday morning, after taking pictures on the beach (see link below). I arrived home to snow and was grateful that we weren’t having a hurricane. I appreciate our safe and reliable airlines. Any flight that is on time and boring is a great flight in my books.
This Thanksgiving, I’m very thankful for lots of great people and few interesting things:
- My parents making sacrifices so my brother and I could attend university.
- Dad, for serving in World War II, teaching us about respect, and sharing his war stories with us so that we grew up with disproportionately more courage than we should have. No one was shooting at us, so we didn’t have to be scared of anything, according to Dad.
- Mom, for her constant encouragement, endless pots of perogies, tolerance of loud rock and roll, and her amazing love for her granddaughters, who miss their Baba dearly.
- My wife Kerry, whose love, energy, chiropractic skills, and construction expertise keep us (and our house) aligned.
- My daughters, Anastasia and Julia, who make life interesting and fun, with their dancing, music, and creativity.
- Our canine chief morale officer, Lola, who’s affection and under-bite have enhanced our lives for eight years.
- My brother Mark, Sonia, and Blake (Go Bruins!), for making trips to Dauphin and Clear Lake lots of fun. How much fun is it that my brother, the Habs fan, is raising a Bruins fan?!
- Aunt Leona, who was not only our cool aunt when we were growing up, but continues in this role for our girls.
- My aunts, uncles and cousins for making trips to Winnipeg in a blizzard worth the drive.
- Clear Lake Lodge for the powerful learning experience (interest rates at 23%) that motivated me to become a consultant.
- My amazing in-laws, led by Frank and Maureen, whose values and family dinners are legendary.
- My extended in-laws, whose visits, boat rides, meals, wine, times at the cottage, and great conversations enrich our lives.
- My clients over the last 25 years, who entrust me to help them build their businesses and builder their wealth. I’ve learned so much from these amazing people, such as Ewen and Shirley, Doug and Gloria, Donna, James, Randy, Jason (a new father!), Frank, Gilbert, Steve, Zlatan, and many, many others. Hope you’ve learned half as much from me as I have from you!
- My mentors and advisors, including Alan Weiss, Chad Barr, Mark Levy, Kelly Ozem, Doug Yaremko, Wayne Bernakevitch, and my CAFE Personal Advisory Group. After all, life is a team sport.
- Accountants, bankers, consultants, lawyers, and advisors everywhere who support our businesses.
- Living in Canada, which has great health care and a standard of living that make it very easy to be an entrepreneur, start a business, and compete globally.
- Nexus and Global Entry, which make travelling to the United States a very easy and quick experience.
- All-wheel-drive vehicles so my trips to Yorkton are stress free.
- Winter tires, and Jack at OK Tire for squeezing us in, to get our cars set for winter when the snow shows up one month early.
- Andy, Rae, and the gang at Dilawri for keeping my car (er, mobile office) in top shape.
- Taking photos of beautiful sights and interesting people with amazing cameras, and sharing these pictures with others to enjoy.
- The internet, so you can read this where ever you are in the world.
What are you thankful for on this Thanksgiving? Who are the important people in your life and how can you acknowledge and thank them?
Now get that yard work done quickly and safely so you can enjoy the turkey and relax with family.
Happy Thanksgiving!
