Exponential Gratitude
Living gratefully, I appreciate a new day in this unprecedented time. People die each day from many diseases and accidents. This day is not a given, it's a gift. I am grateful for my job as we begin a new, also unprecedented, phase of this school year.
As the number of cases of COVID-19 grows exponentially in the U.S. and other places around the world, and the death toll rises, it becomes more difficult to consider all the possibilities the next weeks and months may hold for us all.
Today's "Word for the Day" at gratefulness.org brings perspective:
*Garage fun with the family on a rainy day. Entertaining an energetic 5-year-old is an endeavor worth pursuing.
*The aroma of ham baking and the cheesy potatoes that will accompany it.
*A Zoom meeting with my six sisters, across thousands of miles, but on the same screen and attached with the same heart strings.
*The masks being sewn and sent to where they are needed. My sister and many others are doing this
valuable service work.
*My contribution to the cause of hope in pandemic times: my writings on gratefulness.
*A vividly colorful sunset after two rainy, dreary days.
*Fellow recovering friends keeping connected in the ways we can, and always bringing the rigorous honesty that saves our lives.
*The deep embrace I feel when surrounded by the music and lyrics of songs I love--in this instant it was "Layla."
*A reminder from a good friend that we use all five senses to take in the gifts around us: Hearing the music and laughter, seeing faces of sisters in other states, tasting good food, feeling the touch of a brisk wind and light mist on my face (grateful for the feeling of aliveness it brought), smelling clean clothes.
Grow some gratitude today. It will make a difference to you and to those around you.
As the number of cases of COVID-19 grows exponentially in the U.S. and other places around the world, and the death toll rises, it becomes more difficult to consider all the possibilities the next weeks and months may hold for us all.
Today's "Word for the Day" at gratefulness.org brings perspective:
It is when we are confronted with...poignant reminders of mortality that we
become most aware of the strangeness and wonder of our brief life on Earth.
(Kathleen Basford)
Then I remember. There is always some good, a sense of gratefulness, to lean into and build from.
Gratitude can also grow exponentially.
Here are some gratitudes I noted in the last 24 hours:
*Garage fun with the family on a rainy day. Entertaining an energetic 5-year-old is an endeavor worth pursuing.
*The aroma of ham baking and the cheesy potatoes that will accompany it.
*A Zoom meeting with my six sisters, across thousands of miles, but on the same screen and attached with the same heart strings.
*The masks being sewn and sent to where they are needed. My sister and many others are doing this
valuable service work.
*My contribution to the cause of hope in pandemic times: my writings on gratefulness.
*A vividly colorful sunset after two rainy, dreary days.
*Fellow recovering friends keeping connected in the ways we can, and always bringing the rigorous honesty that saves our lives.
*The deep embrace I feel when surrounded by the music and lyrics of songs I love--in this instant it was "Layla."
*A reminder from a good friend that we use all five senses to take in the gifts around us: Hearing the music and laughter, seeing faces of sisters in other states, tasting good food, feeling the touch of a brisk wind and light mist on my face (grateful for the feeling of aliveness it brought), smelling clean clothes.
Grow some gratitude today. It will make a difference to you and to those around you.
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