Gratitude

"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.”- Melody Beattie

 

The past few days I’ve been reading and reflecting on our senses. I think we all have wondered what it would be like to lose our hearing or sight, but usually it’s in passing. We truly don’t know what we’ve got ‘til it’s gone. But what if we lived appreciating everything we have, everyday, every moment?

Have you ever noticed how happy most disabled or terminally ill children can be? I really believe they know what it is to be happy because they don’t take for granted what abilities they do have. Why is it so hard for us healthy people to appreciate our health and wellness? I don’t have the answer to this, but I do know the happiness I feel when I take some time to write a list of things I’m thankful for. It’s almost like magic sometimes, it’s the magical feeling I would think these sick and unfortunate children have everyday.

The challenge is to take one sense everyday to focus on. For instance, take your sense of smell. Notice and enjoy the smell of the spring breeze, the smell of your pets’ fur, every morsel of your food, the aromas from hot beverages, and the unique scent of everyone you come close to everyday. When you notice each scent, don’t just enjoy it, say a prayer to God about how grateful you are for that smell. I think if we really appreciated a sense a day we would be happier and more in touch with everything that God gives. Taking time to “smell the roses” can be taken up a notch to taking time to pray for the roses, saying thanks to God that he gave us the amazing abilities of senses to really enjoy his creation. We have everything we need in ourselves to really appreciate life and live it to the fullest. Let’s be more grateful, it can only lead to good things!