On Thanksgiving Day, all over America, families sit down to dinner at the same moment - halftime.

The following is not a cry for sympathy. In fact, it probably sounds more sad than it really is: my family rarely hugs or says I love you. Our hug quota saw its biggest peak during my college years as a part of the pre-security-checkpoint routine. Our lack of blatant displays of affection is one part personality and three parts culture. Language, including body language, differs from location to location. In general, Asian countries are less touch-oriented. When it comes to greetings in traditional India, for example, a bowed head accompanied by your palms pressed together in front of your chest trumps the handshake. Though we rarely say it flat out or go through that conventional hugging motion, my family "feels the love," if you will.

If there's one day of the year my mom despises receiving presents, it's Mother's Day. How's that for a little irony? It took my brother and me years to accept this paradox, especially when, in elementary school, the weeks leading up to Mother's day were devoted to gift-making. I don't want a day where suddenly my wish is your command. Just respect me everyday and do as I say. Every day should be Mother's Day. Talk about buzz kill. But in a way, I understand where she was coming from. It seems silly to devote a day to something you should be doing every single day. Kind of like brushing vigorously the day before a dentist appointment or eating extra healthy on days leading up to an annual physical.

Every email sent by my brother ends with, "Thanks!" followed by his name. Even when his message does not require his giving thanks, even when his message is otherwise sardonic, even when he is anything but thankful. Because he's my brother and he knows I love him (ref. paragraph 1), I feel comfortable continuing -- He's completely cheapening the word.

But the truth is, we all do it. I can think back to a number of occasions on which I've mindlessly said or typed the word without actually feeling the sentiment. And perhaps we can blame the rote memorization of "please and thank you are the magic words" during our childhoods.

Every Thanksgiving, my family comes together with a few close family friends. Situated around a table crammed with food, we genuinely give thanks. But every year, I feel like a fraud. Because it is so rare that I actually internalize how thankful I am. That I express it. And that it takes a day on a calendar to make me do so is doubly shameful. Don't get me wrong, there are many aspects and people in my life for whom I am deeply grateful. It's just something I rarely think about in isolation, let alone express.

Yesterday, as my friend and I exchanged Thanksgiving wishes, he said, This isn't just one of those empty Happy Thanksgivings. I truly want you to have an awesome one. I told him I want the exact same for him. The genuineness was palpable.

Talk is cheap. Words and phrases get misused and overused to the point where it takes more than just saying them to feel them. Days like today are special because they force us to think about the meaning behind the word. They force us to feel the sentiment behind the word. I just wish it came more naturally and frequently.

With that, whether we are friends or acquaintances, whether or not we've ever met, thank you for reading. It is truly touching that you appreciate what I have to say. Here's to living everyday like it's Thanksgiving (with regards to giving thanks...not necessarily the calorie consumption!).