Complaint, Indifference, or Gratitude?

Today I am grateful for my siblings and what connects us, past and present. I am also grateful for the wisdom of "one step at a time" and the many ways it can be applied in my life.

Living gratefully is a choice, and it is one I am committed to. I have no regrets about this. It has been the most transformative action in my life over the last 25 years. The following quote reminds me of my choice:

"May I understand that the choice between complaint, indifference, 

and gratitude is mine at every single moment of my life." 

Pierre Pradervand

If I apply this idea to the long training run I did yesterday, here is how it could have played out. I could have complained about the rain, my tight quads, the return of some humidity, the locked public bathrooms, and more. The long run would have felt longer, the muscles tighter, the humidity more heavy. 

It would have been pretty difficult to be indifferent to running while I was actually running, but I could have been indifferent to my surroundings and missed the deer and other wildlife we saw, raindrops playing in streetlights, and so much more. Indifference would have stymied the emotions that surfaced and moved through me as I moved through the miles. 

I chose gratitude. Okay, not every single step. Running that far has challenges. But for most of the steps over most of the miles, I was present and appreciating being out there. A step at a time, a day at a time, living gratefully brings me to deeper presence, more peaceful understanding.

What will you choose today?