10 Days of Gratitude

"If the only prayer you said in your whole life was, "thank you," that would suffice." - Meister Eckhart


Since the countdown to Halloween blog party is over, I've found myself lost as to what to write about. It's not that I don't have ideas for blog posts, it's just that it was easier when I had a definite focus in mind.  That being said, I've decided that from now until Thanksgiving I will try to post daily about things I am thankful for. 

Although I don't care much for Thanksgiving as a national holiday (and it's all founded on lies, but that's a rant for another day) I do love the idea of being thankful for the blessings in my life.  It's so easy to spend my days worrying about problems, focused on things that aren't going right in my life, thinking how I don't measure up to other people, and brooding about bad stuff that may happen that I have no control over anyway.  This time of year, in particular, seems to lend itself to sadness and anxiety for me.  The gloom won't fully go away until the days start lengthening again and the holiday season is firmly behind us.  Mid November is the time when I really find my mood turning dark and my worries multiplying.  I don't want it to be this way this year!

So today I will start a two week series of blog posts all about the things (big and small) that I am thankful for.  The things that make life good.  If anyone out there would like to do the same, please join me, and welcome! I'm calling this my 10 Days of Gratitude.   Posts need not be fancy, even a line or two a day of things to be thankful for will do!  Here goes day one for me:

I am grateful today for my home.  It is in a terribly messy state right now, and I'll be cleaning for a few hours. This may not be a fun way to spend a day off (and earlier I was feeling pissy about it) but how lucky am I to have a safe, spacious, comfortable home full of all the junk I could afford to accumlate? The pile of science-fair worthy leftovers that need cleaning in my refrigerator and the dirty dishes in the sink are all clear signs that the people who live here never go hungry!  What a wonderful thing that is, when you stop and think about it!  When I go grocery shopping later (another chore I was dreading) I will go about it with a grateful heart, and remember those who don't have enough to eat. And when the clerk checks me out, I'll throw in a couple of the $5 food boxes the store is donating to the local food bank.   Then I'll come home and remember that it's a blessing to have groceries to put away and dinner to cook, and a nice home to do both in!

So that is what I am grateful for today: my home,  no matter how messy and imperfect it may be, and all it's comforts.  I am one very lucky woman, indeed.