I am also grateful because my older daughter is feeling much
better and is looking forward to starting an externship in her chosen field tomorrow…..I am grateful today that my youngest daughter called me to chat and had a smile in her voice because she’s started painting again…..I am grateful that my husband, who had my mouth watering with thoughts of the meal he was planning to grill tonight, knew that I would be just as happy with peanut butter and crackers after he wore himself out mowing in this heat all day…I am grateful that Rey wanted to hang out in the corral with Beau so he wouldn’t have to be alone…..I am grateful that I have clean sheets to crawl between tonight and that we have a “sleep” button on our TV remote because I love the comfort of both…..I am grateful for the strength and accuracy of my hands today that allowed me to use the death slap on the three horse flies torturing Kit….I am grateful that the C4 turtle showed up today to entertain Tank and Jag and give us something to laugh out loud about….I am grateful for the view of the pasture and eight peaceful horses that I am looking at right now....and I am grateful to you for reading this blog and giving my words an audience.
You may be wondering what kind of blog post this is – what
purpose my gratitude list could possibly be serving. I just wanted to share another tool I’m using in my attempt to pay more attention. One of my husband's cousins has used a gratitude journal for years. (There are days she’s grateful that the car won't start so she can’t run over her husband on his way out the door - but grateful is grateful.) It has become part of her daily routine and the focus she has on her surroundings is astounding. She is so aware of her own strengths, weaknesses, curses and blessings that she is able to avoid imposing harsh or quick judgments on others. She looks at things in a unique and positive way and has empathy where it’s warranted. She is my “go to” person because she approaches life logically and with appreciation. I have watched her grow immensely since starting her daily gratitude journal routine. Now I’m FINALLY starting my own in hopes of a similar journey.
You will be amazed at the guidelines and examples you’ll find if you GOOGLE “Gratitude Journal”. I’m still figuring out exactly how I want to structure mine but I’m determined to make a habit of writing down at least ten things I’m grateful for – and why –each day. I may include some of my entries here occasionally but I promise this is not turning into a “Gratitude Blog”! I’m simply sharing this goal with you in the hopes of inspiring you to do the same. After all, Wikihow says, “A gratitude journal is a great way to keep yourself in a thankful and positive state of mind". Who are we to argue with Wikihow?!