The Gratitude Attitude

At the risk of sounding hopelessly naive and saccharine, I must confess that every day, before I put my feet on the floor, I lie in bed (and do, please, notice the correct usage of that verb which is becoming rarer than civilized discourse in an election year) and I list the things for which I'm grateful.  The list is long.  There's Himself, of course, who is everything I never used to look for and everything I need.  And even when he snores (yes, dear, I'm sorry, but "facts is facts")  I remember all the years when I lived alone and the house was dead quiet at 3AM and I hated it.  I am grateful for my two wonderful sons, entirely different from each other and each an absolute miracle to me, arriving as they did so late in my life.  I miss them, because as you know, they are away at (expensive) college, but rather than suffer from the dreaded "empty nest syndrome" I find that most of my thoughts of them are full of hope, energy, and gratitude.  They are each getting a wonderful education, and more importantly, turning into the kind of people I would pick for friends were they not related to me.  They are kind, compassionate, talented, funny, and bright.  There is a long list of amazing friends, some of whom reach decades back, who have brightened my life with witty conversation, laughter, warm and caring hearts, and a few escapades that nobody will ever hear about from ME!  There's the house..no, I correct myself.  It's a "home" in all the best senses of that word.  It's dusty and cluttered, but I am not unaware of how many people in the world would consider themselves rich if they had that patched roof overhead.  The list goes on and on, with food, health, vision, hearing. I could go on for days.

The point here, I think, on this very rainy and gloomy autumn day, is that we all have a voice chattering endlessly in our head.  When we awaken we pick the "dialogue of the day" and whether it's positive or negative is largely within our power.  There are things I could choose to whine about...several relatives and friends who died too young, unemployment, the odd creak from..oh let's call it "maturity", shall we?..the election, the way people drive.  You get the idea.  But why would I want to do that?  Nobody would want to come to my "pity party" and that includes myself.  Although every now and then a really good rant that progresses to silly overkill can be very entertaining.  The trick is to carry it to the point of laughter, otherwise it's a complete waste of time.

So if you started today with the wrong tape running in your head, it's not too late to change the track.  Oh dear.  I'm dating myself, aren't I?  Nobody plays tapes anymore.  Well, you know what I mean.  Download the right feed or whatever the heck they do.  Stop right now and look at your life and pick out the things that don't stink.  Start small.  And when you feel the calmness that fills your heart bring it out into the world and spread it around.  Because it's getting a little crazy out there.