The unbearable lightness of gratitude
Why does gratitude hurt so good?
I want to feel much more grateful than I do. Usually. I have so much to be grateful for… the big things—family, friends, home. I have the most wonderful family. I have best friends who I love with all my heart. I have a home which has been a sanctuary and an inspiration for over 50 years.
And the little things! Which are not little. It’s a no-brainer to be thankful for family and friends and home. It’s less obvious to be truly thankful for sights, sounds, smells, the pleasures of the senses, pleasures of the body and the heart, in the present—and even less obvious to be thankful for the subtle magic of what feels like good karma. Things going right. Getting a shout-out from the universe.
Wow, do I ever have nothing to complain about! And yet I complain.
Or do I? Even when I’m not exactly complaining, I’m not giving enough credit to whatever it is that you are supposed to give credit to when you feel grateful. And that’s where it gets interesting.
Who/what am I feeling grateful to when I feel grateful? I know this is far too big a question for a few paragraphs in a blog post. It’s the whole history of how we see ourselves in the great pattern. What we believe protects us, and what we believe harms us.
I don’t know the answer. I only know that it feels good to feel grateful and it also feels scary.
Gratitude makes me feel vulnerable. It makes me feel like crying. It makes me feel connected to everything. It makes me feel that I am admitting to being connected to everything. It makes me feel a sense of responsibility to everything. It makes me feel mortal and immortal.
Feeling grateful is an interaction with the numinous present. It’s being here now. Which is where I’d rather be.
Humor Section: A few funny pictures…
We’re worried now that with AI we won’t be able to tell the difference between pictures of what is real and pictures of what is not real, but that has been true ever since Photoshop gave magic powers to people who know how to use it.
I probably use only 20% of Photoshop’s tools, but I’m good at figuring out how to do something I don’t know how to do when I want to do it. Google it, baby. Google it very specifically. There are always others who have figured it out already and are willing to spill the beans.
This was a joke I made for the family. Someone posted a picture of a box of individually wrapped prunes, as an example of weird, wasteful marketing. I just took it one step further…
And one more bit of silliness I made to amuse someone…
That all for today, Folks!
I believe that gratitude is an important part of "happiness." The notion of "practice" is compatible with both gratitude and happiness. When people make it a point of daily life to "practice" gratitude, it becomes more natural, more relevant, and it "flexes" the happiness capacity, much like using any skills, abilities, or body muscles...leads to improvement. Very nice essay, Janina. ❤️
Have you watched the effect gratitude has when applied? Express it at the drive thru window next time you use one and watch it radiate into the adjacent staff. Potent stuff is Gratitude!! Infective it is !! Absolutely LOVED the "smartphone" image!! I always Love your words, many times wishing I could hear them through the vibration of your voice.
Take Good Care!