A Year Later

This is my 366th post which is a leap year of posts on living a life of gratitude. There are so many things I have learned about gracious living this past year. One is that I am very human. Every time I think I have a handle on being gracious and grateful for who I am and what I have in my life, I find myself getting sucked back into behavior I thought I had shed. I am going to go back and practice some of my previous grateful living activities, maybe come up with new insights, new ideas and activities to carry me further along on my journey to living a life of gratitude. I have grown tremendously this past year and I am a happier, more grateful person.

Here are activities that have been the most meaningful for me:
Intentionally smiling at people daily. Greeting people with Good Morning, How are You etc. daily. Waking up each morning and saying and naming at least 10 things I am grateful for. Flipping my negatives into positives. What I mean is looking at the positive even in negative situations. Paying at least 3 people compliments each day. Saying thank you when someone compliments me. Wearing rose colored glasses. Visualizing how I want my day to go. Loving and enjoying my family and telling them how much I love them and enjoy them. Forgiving and letting go. Listening to others use appreciative speech. Focus on the positive things people do for me. Living my life according to my values and goals. Being grateful for who I am and what I have.

Being grateful is coming more naturally to me and for that I am blessed.

Paying For College, Oh My

It's that time again for me. My 3rd and youngest child is getting her undergraduate offers of financial aid. Next year I will have 2 in college. Plus my oldest daughter will be returning to graduate school in a 5 year program. Will I be able to help her? I know she isn't expecting help, but still. I'm feeling the pressure of how will I pay for college. Do I need to get a new job? A third job? But, I'm going to use my own advice. I need to feel the joy of helping them with their college expenses. I need to be joyful that my money has been used to help my children experience college and all that it brings. Paying for college will work out as it has so far. I need to stop worrying about it and instead put a plan in place for college payment, since this will help me move into my comfort zone. I need to be grateful for what I've been able to do so far and be grateful for whatever I will be able to do going forward.

Feel the joy of giving my children a college education. Let go of the worry of continuing to pay for college and instead, work on a plan to help as I can. Feel the blessing of being able to give what I can give and know that it is appreciated.

The Feel Of Spring

My favorite touch sensation in spring is the welcoming, warm spring air against my skin and the feel of the warm breeze blowing in through an open window. I also enjoy the way the cool earth feels in my hands as I work the soil. I love the feel of the soft, new growth on the bushes and trees in my yard. It also is great to feel a light jacket on after months of wearing heavy, bulky coats. I love the warm spring days.


There is so much to be thankful for everyday. I am grateful to have taken the time to recall the sights, sounds, feel, smells, and taste of spring. This is a glorious season with the awakening of vegetation, baby animals arrival and the anticipation of longer days to enjoy the warmth of spring.

Hearing Spring

Some of my favorite spring sounds include children's laughter as they run through rain puddles, jump rope and play hopscotch. I love listening to the sound of children honking their bicycle horns, robins singing, and blue jays cackling their territorial song. Another favorite is the whack of a ball as it makes contact with a bat and the cheers from the fans in the stands. Now that's springtime.

I will record the sounds of spring will be recorded in my gratitude journal.

Spring Scents

There is nothing so sweet smelling to me as the very, fragrant smell of a hyacinth, and lets not forget the fragrance of a lilac in bloom. The smell of sweetness coming from a candy filled Easter basket has my mouth watering.

I will write in my gratitude journal all the wonderful smells associated with spring. I hope to add to it throughout the season.

The Taste of Spring

What can be better than the taste of freshly picked, spring vegetables of asparagus, spinach, lettuce, and peas? Then there is my all time favorite of jelly beans and chocolate Easter eggs. Of course, a hard cooked, decorated Easter egg is delicious also. Finally, a childhood favorite taste of mine is the warm, sweet April showers caught on my tongue. Can you taste spring in the air?

I will record in my gratitude journal all the tastes of spring I am thankful for.

Spring's Awakening

I am grateful and hopeful for all that spring brings. I am especially grateful for the 5 senses of spring. The sights of spring start for me, when the purple, yellow and white crocus pop open. Accompanying the crocus are the buds on the bushes and trees, the yellow daffodils, and the forsythia in bloom. The lime colored new growth on the awakening deciduous trees is a beautiful sight. Then in the heart of spring, the rhododendrons, weeping cherries, plum, peach and dogwood trees fill the neighborhoods with glorious color. I love flowers and am getting carried away with all the flowering sights, but I also enjoy the sight of light jackets and short sleeved shirts, open windows and people driving top down in their convertibles. There are so many enjoyable sights of spring.

In my gratitude journal, I will awaken my spring longings by writing about the glorious sights of spring.

Stop Bugging Me

You know how it is. You've been telling a loved one to take out the garbage, fix the door, get their homework done or whatever. When I do that I feel like a nag. I don't like that feeling. Yes I wished my loved ones would respond immediately to my request, but that just isn't realistic. My requests and priorities may not be their priorities or maybe it just slips their mind. I need to find a way to let this stuff go and also to be intentional about not nagging.

Revisiting Touch

On February 21st of this year, I wrote about how powerful touch was between my dad and I. He has lost most of his hearing and he gets very frustrated not being able to hear us. I held his hand and rubbed his arm and I know he was as touched by this as I was. I've thought about that time with my dad a lot over the last month.

When I started dating my husband, the first thing I had to get used to was how his family loved to give hugs. This was very different from my family, but I found I loved it. I've also found that during this time of not feeling well because of the post concussion symptoms that hugs have been something I crave. It has brought me calmness and comfort.

I will be intentional with hugging my family and friends.

No Day Like Today

Yesterday my husband and I celebrated our friends 56th birthday. He finished treatment 6 months ago for esophageal cancer and is clean. He says it is a miracle to be with us. A few years back he had colon cancer. He and his family were upbeat and talked about how appreciative they were to all of us for being there for all of them. They spoke about how grateful they are for the return of his health. This man is one of those people that is thoughtful, generous, brillant and always there for the rest of us. We are appreciative that you are healthy and that you can remain so positive. I am blessed to have your friendship.

I will be wake up tomorrow and count my blessings and give thanks for the opportunity to enjoy another glorious day.

What Else Makes Me Happy?

I was shopping in Barnes and Noble last weekend and there was a display of Happiness books. There were 23 different titles! Are there so many of us out there that want to figure out how to have a happier life? Earlier in the week I wrote a list of what makes me happy. Now I am going to come up with a list of new untested ideas that I think will make me happy. I may even act on 1 or 2 of them.

What's Up Doc

I just came back from many hours in the ER. I had a basketball hit me on the side of my head last week which caused me to have a concussion. Good news is that all the bad stuff has been ruled out: fracture, bleeding and stroke. What can I take away from this experience? The x-ray room was off a long and busy corridor. I was able to people watch, while sitting in a wheelchair, during the ½ hour I was waiting for my turn at the CAT Scan. Lots of people, hospital employees on their way home, are uncomfortable and would not make eye contact with me. Maybe they were being respectful, but I smiled at everyone that walked past me and I even got 1 or 2 smiles back. The CAT Scan technician said I had an incredible smile during the whole process and that whatever I was doing in my life, I should keep on doing. Thanks, I appreciate the compliment.

I also learned that my husband and I could stay positive during the whole experience. We went into this knowing we would be in the ER for several hours and made the best of our time. They gave us a comfortable room to wait in and we had all nice people helping me. Even though it was a long, tiring day, I met many kind people and got to hang out and talk to my husband for several hours.

My lesson is to remember that life is good and to make the most of every moment I have with my loved ones. Also, pleasantness and a sunny disposition is contagious and a lot more fun. Lastly, there are a lot of people who are really good in their careers and I need to thank them and compliment them profusely.

Grateful Speech

Since I started down this path of living a life of gratitude, I've heard many people speak about how grateful they are and how appreciative they are. Am I the only person around that wasn't using this beautiful gratitude language? Tomorrow I will listen to people for grateful speech. I hope to be pleasantly surprised with how many times I hear this speech come from a variety of people. This will also help me practice intentional listening.

I'm Amazing

Every time I pass a mirror, smile and remind myself that I am amazing.

Thank Me

Every time I pass a mirror tomorrow, smile and feel grateful that I am me!

To Do Lists

I'm a list person. I love the feeling of accomplishment as I cross off another finished item on my list. When I make a to do list I fill it with easy to cross off items. This helps me feel successful and mentally gets me psyched to do the more difficult items on the list. The greatest thing I find with making my lists is that it helps me get organized. It also gets me to complete a lot more tasks than I ever accomplished before become a list maker.

Make a to do list of 5 items I will do tomorrow to work on living a life of gratitude. I'll make sure that at least 3 of the items are easy for me to do. Easy items for me might be to say hello or good morning to a lot of people, smile, or pay 3 people compliments. It will also include 1 or 2 things that have been more difficult for me to be successful at as I travel along my journey of grateful living.

Happiness Is?

What makes me happy? Write my list in my gratitude journal of what makes me happy? There is no time like today to live my life surrounded by people, places and things that makes me happy. I need to let go of the stuff that fills me with anguish and uncertainty and replace it with those that fills me with happiness.

Visualizing My Ideal Life

Yesterday I thought about my hopes and dreams that are yet to be fulfilled. I will close my eyes and visualize myself living my ideal life and I will feel the joy that this life is bringing me. Write down my ideal life on an index card and look at the card throughout the day. The card will help me bring my ideal life back into my thoughts. I will take the time throughout the day to see and feel myself living the life of my dreams.

Looking Back

When I'm 90 years old, I hope that I can look back on my life and be happy with how I lived my life and what I accomplished. Think about my dreams for my life, what changes would I make and what actions can I take to get closer to my ideal life.

Touch

I spent the last few days with my dad and mom, ages 90 and 88. My dad's hearing aid was on the brink, making it difficult to have a conversation. Even when it is working, hearing has become difficult for him. Feeling his frustration, I took his hand as we sat on the couch. We sat there silently, for a very long time with my hand in his. It was a beautiful thing and was very meaningful for me and I believe, my dad also.

I will be intentional with practicing touch with my loved ones: Holding a hand, rubbing an aching back, or a hug.