Sunday 2 June 2013

Living in Gratitude

Sometimes we do crazy little things at the dinner table, just for fun, or to provoke some thought or to dissipate any grumpiness.  I ABSOLUTELY will not allow myself to live with grumpy moles!  No, Siree!  There is no need to be grumpy around others!  If one is feeling unsocial, take yourself to bed!


Dinner Table Character Improvers.  There are times we have had to think of one nice thing to say about the person sitting to the left and then right of you.  Or we may each have to disclose one good and one not so good thing that happened in our day.  Or like last night, I asked my husband to write down 10 things he was grateful for.  An exercise in gratitude.  These little exercises are great conversation stimulators, and they provoke discussions in families, which is not always easy when you have monosyllabic teenagers at the table.  This lightens the mood and sets the tone for conversation.

So last night, I too wrote down 10 things that I was grateful for.  And I thought about sharing them.  They are, in no particular order, just what came tumbling out of me at that moment, through the pen, onto the paper:
  1. My life - I wouldn't change a thing!
  2. My family - grateful to share my life with them.
  3. My house - a comfortable and loving sanctuary.
  4. My garden, which feeds us and gives so much pleasure.
  5. My husband, who works hard, is a non-drinker/smoker and is sexy (he really liked that one!)
  6. My children, both talented, beautiful individuals.
  7. My job, which is interesting, challenging and rewarding.
  8. Our financial situation - we can pretty much buy what we want when we need it or budget for it (it wasn't always that way).
  9. We aren't limited or imposed upon by outside community, country, poverty, war etc.
  10. Food - we have so much!  And Health, which goes hand in hand!
Curious little bell chillies offer up a bright flash of colour in the garden
Making a gratitude list is a really great way to appreciate what we have in life!  If I had to sit down and think upon such a list, it may be a lot more well thought out and planned, but the above list is what tumbled out in that moment.  It made me feel humble and blessed for all that we have.  Mike's list was totally different (of course, he HAD to put his wife as one of the 10 points, for fear of losing his life), but his list was pertinent to him and his journey.
Abundance
In a way, I find blogging is kind of my Gratitude Journal, documenting all our activities, experiments, processes and successes.  It is a great way to reflect on one's time and journey in Life.

I have read about people overcoming depression by keeping a Gratitude Journal at their bedside.  They are encouraged to write 3 things they are grateful for before going to bed each night.  This makes them focus on the positive, ensures a better night's sleep and eventually becomes an ingrained pattern of positive thinking which burns the blues away!   What a lovely way to end a day!  
Day Lilies
So what are you grateful for?  List 3 things right now off the top of your head........

2 comments:

  1. Beautifully put! This is a lesson I had to learn the hard way some years back and gratitude for what I had at the time was what brought me out of a deep funk. Now... life is good :)

    I live and work out in the open in beautiful surroundings.
    The sun is shining (as I type... that may not last... this is Ireland, after all)
    The world is a beautiful place (sorry, I just can't get beyond the glorious day I see out my window. I think I may need to take a walk in the garden and perhaps pick some salads for lunch).

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  2. Just checked out your blog and yes, you do live in beautiful surroundings! What blessings we have been gifted! Love your writings..... what does it say about our English teachers that we now do this for pleasure??

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