Gratitude Waits Patiently

Today I am grateful for opportunities to walk and talk with some colleagues yesterday. I am also grateful for school spirit and the Great Spirit I have faith in day to day.

Yesterday I implored "Can it be this simple?" The idea of practicing gratitude and the ripple effect it can have?  I believe so.

There is more good news about making gratefulness a habit of our minds, hearts, and souls; gratitude never walks away from us. We may walk away from it, but it waits patiently. This is captured nicely in the following quote:

"While we cry ourselves to sleep, gratitude waits patiently to console and reassure us; there is a 

landscape larger than the one we see."  (Sarah Ban Breathnach)

A landscape larger than the one we see. That is what I want to keep my eyes and heart open to--a larger landscape, a wider and less self-centered perspective. Self-pity gives me tunnel vision and a negative perception. I start to see everything through a dark and despairing lens, and I spiral downward. Self-pity is to be avoided if I want to stay sober, have energy, be a kind and loving wife and mother, contribute to the world in productive ways.

And I know no better way to keep self-pity at bay than to practice gratitude. If I have a little bout of self-pity, and we all do from time to time, I know that tomorrow is a new day. Even that the next hour brings new opportunity and the very next moment can bring some peace if I pause and consider what I have to be grateful for right here and right now.

Yes, it can be that simple. Not always easy, but simple. Gratitude waits patiently and never lets me down when I seek it.