Your Health By: Kim Painter
Thursday, in between the cheese ball appetizers and the pumpkin pie desserts, most of us will indulge in something proven to have powerful health benefits. No, it's not that extra serving of stuffing. It's the expression of gratitude — the simple act of thanking God, thanking others or just counting your blessings. Saying thanks, it turns out, isn't just pious or polite. It's good for you. But there's a catch: You have to do it even when the calendar does not say "Thanksgiving."
i saw this little decorative container at a fancy house on queens road. i was there for a catering gig. a housewarming party. the owners had recently remodeled. the house was phenomenal. i adore their decor. and in the kitchen, next to the professional chef's gas stove and butcher block counter, sat this reminder to count my blessings. i wonder if the people who live here have any concept of how wealthy they are. (they have a separate refrigerator just for beer, and a central music system that pipes rhapsody streams through the entire house) and if they are at all grateful for the things they have acquired. there place is such a stark contrast to what i now possess. and while, once upon a time, this would have been my ideal, i am more at home being able to move all my belongings in a car load and a half. but it got me thinking about thanksgiving. and how it's my favorite time of year. about all the blessings i have encountered just in the past few months. and i decided to keep a list. or a bunch of lists.
i have heard of gratitude journals and making a standing inventory, but i wanted a way to collect my blessings in a more random manner. to be able to read through them in a less strategized manner. to fit with my more relaxed lifestyle. so i made a box. my gratitude box. and labeled it grace & love. and i plan to keep a collection of index cards for the next 365 days. thanksgiving to thanksgiving. sort of an early new years resolution. and next year on my absolute favorite day, i will be able to look back and reminisce about the daily things that are all too often swept under the rug. lost in the wake of the stresses and grind. practice gratitude. love wildly.
1 comment:
I like your box. Just read this yesterday and has me thinking about the power of writing and storing:
"This is something I do all the time, shove bits of paper with prayers and names on them into desk drawers, little boxes, my glove compartment. I've found that when you give up on using your mind to solve a problem--which it is holding on to the like a dog with a chew toy--writing it down helps turn off the terrible alertness. When you're not siphoned into the black hole of worried control and playing fretful Savior, turning the problem over to God ont he elves in the glove compartment harnesses something in the universe that is bigger than you, and that just might work." ~Anne Lamott
Post a Comment