Thanksgiving Day
Gratitude is a strange thing to be thankful for. It’s kind of like being happy about being joyful. It seems somewhat redundant.
There have been countless studies about the benefits of a gratitude practice. It is a keystone practice that can benefit all your other practices. But it’s not just about improving your practice, and it is a clear way to enjoy life more.
Having regular time is an excellent way to practice, whether at the start or end of the day. Try to write out three things you are grateful for and make them as specific as possible.
Around 2010 and for much of the year, I underwent a significant personal transformation. There wasn’t a change in external factors like marriage, family, or career. It was internal upheaval. A decisive moment came in August of that year with the realization and experience of contentment.
My standard program was to chase and have more and more only to find satisfaction was elusive.
Even though I knew I needed to be more grateful to enjoy my life instead of another one, I found it very difficult. I would sit down and couldn’t think of anything I was thankful for. Or I would just keep coming back to the same things I did previously.
The thing I was most grateful for and wanted to express was in my marriage. So I decided to write an item a day I was thankful for about my wife. I was able to do this every day for a year, no matter where I was in the world. On our anniversary in 2012, I gave her the journal, and she was touched and blown away.
The more you acknowledge what you are grateful for, the more you will find things to be thankful for.
What started with writing one thing a day I’m grateful for my wife grew into writing three specific things every day.
One the years, I have built the practice into three times a day I write out three things. I do three first thing in Morning Pages. I do three things in my planner when I plan my day. I do three things when I reflect on the day with the Prayer of Examen. I don’t always get to all of them every day, but it has made me live grateful throughout the day.
The goal is not to have a habit of gratitude practice. It is to live a life filled with awe and wonder how great it is to be alive. And it’s a gratitude practice that can help you get there.
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