gratitude

This is one of the writing prompts of my online group this month and it brings to mind many things. Caution semi rant coming here.

Thank you notes, where are they? One of my memories is writing thank yous with Mom standing over my shoulder to supervise. It is hard to say thank you sincerely for footed pajamas at fourteen when they were packed with a little golden book and a stuffed animal, but Mom made sure I wrote a thank you even if all I could say was “It was nice you thought of me.” Now if I get a thank you I spend some time considering whether I should frame it. Even a thank you face to face is tough to come by, and somehow makes the gift seem more like an expected donation than something I spent time shopping for and delivering. Oh well, this battle is probably lost.

On a positive note the gratitude I feel for small kindnesses cannot be measured. The pal who uses messenger to talk to me in real time, the phone call to see if we can have coffee, the compliment on a blouse, all these little things lift me. They cannot be taken for granted; they are the happy bonuses of everyday life. How can the givers be thanked? A smile and saying thank you works but a return of the compliment, call or message is another way of saying this means so much.

Spiritual gratitude is a daily part of my life. The house I live in, the food I eat, and the clothes I wear are all gifts. Yes, I work to earn them but the health, the intelligence and the desire to work are gifts from the power of the universe. The serenity of my soul comes from my belief that when I can no longer move the mountains that block my way, He will do it for me. So I say thank you daily.