How to be Thankful for ALL of It - The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
- Rubie Lyn Pablo
- Nov 27, 2025
- 3 min read
As we step into the week of Thanksgiving, I’ve been reflecting on what it truly means to give thanks.
Not the surface-level gratitude we express out of habit… but a deeper, more honest, more expansive kind of thankfulness.
Today, I want to explore the theme of giving thanks not only for what has uplifted us—but also for what has challenged us.
Not just for the people who made life easier, but the ones who stretched us, frustrated us, even hurt us… because they, too, shaped who we have become.
And ultimately, I want to explore what it means to give thanks to yourself.
The good, the bad, and the messy parts in between.
To recognize that who you are today is not a mistake or an accident, it is perfectly aligned with where you are meant to be in this moment.
If life were meant to be any other way, it would already be that way.
There is a strange peace in that truth.
A softening.
A permission to rest.
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The Moment That Sparked This Reflection
This insight surfaced recently as I noticed how much of our gratitude naturally gravitates toward the pleasant: the friends who supported us, the mentors who guided us, the beautiful moments that filled our hearts.
But rarely do we pause to acknowledge the tougher moments.
The friction-filled conversations.
The people who triggered us.
The disappointments that forced us to grow.
We often avoid thanking those parts of our life, yet they are the very experiences that revealed our blind spots, expanded our capacity, and deepened our wisdom.
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The Larger Pattern We’re All Living Inside
Sitting with this, I noticed a deeper truth:
We grow not only because of what feels good, but often because of what feels uncomfortable. Life doesn’t evolve us only through blessings, it also evolves us through breakdowns and breakthroughs.
Every person who challenges you is polishing an aspect of your character.
Every difficult season is strengthening a part of you that was not yet strong enough.
Every unexpected twist is guiding you closer to your deeper self.
Gratitude, when expanded, becomes a pathway to wholeness.
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Three Questions That Emerged
This brought up some powerful questions for me:
Why do we only express thanks for what is enjoyable or easy?
What if gratitude wasn’t selective?
What if we could honor both the people who comforted us and the ones who confronted us?
Imagine what would shift inside us if we allowed our gratitude to include our entire experience, not just the curated parts.
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The Insight That Landed Deeply
What I came to realize is this:
Even the difficult people and moments were teachers.They revealed where my boundaries were weak.They highlighted where my ego was too rigid.They showed me perspectives I hadn’t yet considered.
Every challenging interaction stretched me into someone larger, someone more aware, someone more aligned.
When we thank the discomfort, we reclaim our power.
We stop resisting life and start learning from it.
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A Simple Practice for This Week
To integrate this, here’s a practice I used and now offer to you:
Take three deep, slow breaths.
Bring to mind someone who challenged you this year.
Instead of resisting the discomfort, allow their presence into your
awareness.
Bless them with good energy.
Thank them, quietly, sincerely, for revealing something you needed
to see.
This is not about condoning harmful behavior.
It’s about reclaiming your growth and refusing to let any moment go to waste.
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An Invitation for You
I share this because I believe:
Your light and your shadows both matter.
Your strengths and your struggles both shape your path.
Every version of you along the way has carried wisdom, resilience, and intention you may not have recognized at the time.
So this Thanksgiving, I invite you to thank your whole self -
the courageous parts,
the wounded parts,
the evolving parts,and the beautifully imperfect human who is doing the best they can with what they know.
You are perfect for where you are right now.
Not because everything is ideal, but because this moment is preparing you for the next one.
Be thankful for your journey.
Be thankful for your growth.
Be thankful for the becoming that is still unfolding.
Happy Thanksgiving.May you meet yourself with grace, compassion, and gratitude - all of it.
- Nitin
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“We’re all just walking each other home.” — Ram Dass
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