99 Blessings
Today I am grateful for Oliver (our cockapoo) and the joy he brings our family. I am also grateful for the words and writings of Brother David Steindl-Rast.
If his name looks familiar, it may be because his quote is at the top of my blog: "In daily life we must see that it is not happiness that makes us grateful, but gratefulness that makes us happy." There's a reason that quote is there. It is at the heart of what "Habitual Gratitude" is about. Happiness is not elusive, it's right in front of us and within us, if we look through a lens of gratefulness.
I have referred to Brother David in posts including these two from October, 2012: Are You Awake? and Worth the Risk? I recently enjoyed his latest book, titled 99 Blessings.
The book is a compilation of 99 blessings written by Brother David over a three-month period, writing one a day on as he says "whatever happened to come to my mind, from insects to the Internet, from friendship to fresh linen." I appreciate that he wrote them once and left them in their original form. No improvement needed. That's inspired writing.
Blessing #45 is one of my favorites:
"Source of all blessings, you bless us with imprecision-with all that is approximate, vague, close but not quite; all that leaves room for the more specific, more precise, room for the imagination. May I know when to be exact and when to move freely and blessed in the space so generously provided by all that is not perfectly defined, giving full scope to our dreams and to our creativity."
As someone who has struggled with perfectionism at times, and too much black-and-white thinking, I like the idea of imprecision, for freedom to imagine and create. Gray areas can lead to clarity if given a chance.
Each of the 99 blessings follows the same pattern-first recognizing the blessing as such, then an indication of how it can be passed on. My hope is that "Habitual Gratitude" is following a similar pattern.
More tomorrow on 99 Blessings.
If his name looks familiar, it may be because his quote is at the top of my blog: "In daily life we must see that it is not happiness that makes us grateful, but gratefulness that makes us happy." There's a reason that quote is there. It is at the heart of what "Habitual Gratitude" is about. Happiness is not elusive, it's right in front of us and within us, if we look through a lens of gratefulness.
I have referred to Brother David in posts including these two from October, 2012: Are You Awake? and Worth the Risk? I recently enjoyed his latest book, titled 99 Blessings.
The book is a compilation of 99 blessings written by Brother David over a three-month period, writing one a day on as he says "whatever happened to come to my mind, from insects to the Internet, from friendship to fresh linen." I appreciate that he wrote them once and left them in their original form. No improvement needed. That's inspired writing.
Blessing #45 is one of my favorites:
"Source of all blessings, you bless us with imprecision-with all that is approximate, vague, close but not quite; all that leaves room for the more specific, more precise, room for the imagination. May I know when to be exact and when to move freely and blessed in the space so generously provided by all that is not perfectly defined, giving full scope to our dreams and to our creativity."
As someone who has struggled with perfectionism at times, and too much black-and-white thinking, I like the idea of imprecision, for freedom to imagine and create. Gray areas can lead to clarity if given a chance.
Each of the 99 blessings follows the same pattern-first recognizing the blessing as such, then an indication of how it can be passed on. My hope is that "Habitual Gratitude" is following a similar pattern.
More tomorrow on 99 Blessings.
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