One thing to be supremely grateful for today | Eric Frydenlund

No, not lucky to be witness to one of the darker periods of our history. Rather, lucky to be witness to the extraordinary beauty that lies outside the images flashing across our screens.

The exceptional world to which I refer is not given to us without commitment. It does not zip across the World Wide Web to magically appear in our inbox. It is not delivered to our front door by Amazon. We must turn off our screens and walk out that front door.

I made that commitment recently: a day hike in the Yellow River State Forest in northeast Iowa that I’d been planning for a week. After studying the trail map, I settled on a trail that takes hikers into the depths and onto the pinnacles of the Driftless area, which is untouched by glaciers.

It was a cloudless day with the sun so bright that its warmth lifted my spirits. Late fall colors were building to a crescendo. I’ve had people ask me when the best time is to see the peak colors of fall, which is like asking me to pick the winning lottery numbers. On this day, I won the lottery.

When I began walking down the trail, I entered a world colored yellow. Bright yellow maple leaves speckled the horizon, ascending to the sky in concentric circles like smoke rising from a fire. I chose the Red Oak Loop Trail because on the map it appeared to follow the ridge line that the fire tower sits on, keeping my hike relatively level.

I was wrong. The trail descends into the valley twice, requiring a strenuous walk back to the top. Yet there is a reward in climbing a hill surrounded by autumn colors, as if ascending into a hidden paradise. I earned this satisfaction.

Human arrogance suggests that such magnificent sights are provided for our pleasure. Yet rivers provide an escape route for water from rain and earthen springs, creating valleys. And fall colors represent the culmination of the annual life cycle of a tree.

These wonders of nature were not created for us. We create joy for ourselves by showing up in the moment. This moment is all we have. The rest are either memories of past moments or expectations of future moments. Be thankful for what the lottery wheel spins for us today.

Our dog Gil recently won the lottery for a second time. A couple of years ago, a squirrel fell out of a tree and landed a few feet from Gil’s nose, much to the surprise of both parties. Now it happened again.

We were walking along a trail at the park when a squirrel leaped for the branch of a small oak tree. He missed, landing in front of us. Gil could not believe his good fortune. Squirrels usually don’t rain from the sky. The bushy-tailed rodent fled for cover with Gil in blissful pursuit.

Though not a party to this meet and greet, I enjoyed the moment immensely. I was thankful that lightning does strike twice.

In his "Barking Up the Wrong Tree" blog post “How to find meaning in life,” Eric Barker writes, “Meaning is not waiting for you like an unclaimed bag at a sad regional airport. It's not included in your welcome kit at birth.” Rather, and here he distills the thinking of the philosopher Albert Camus: “There is no meaning unless you live as if there is. You have to earn it. With action.”

To find meaning and gratitude in life, it is not necessary to take a 4 mile hike. Turn off the screen. Holster that cellphone. Find a park where the acreage of grass outnumbers that of asphalt and concrete. Or walk around the block in the opposite direction that you usually take and see your neighborhood from a new perspective.

By deductive reasoning, I have determined that regardless of party affiliation, religious beliefs or economic status, all of you reading this column have one undeniable attribute in common: You are alive in this moment.

This constitutes a state of grace to be supremely grateful for in this season of Thanksgiving. Walk out the front door and celebrate the moment.