So, you know those people in your life? The really really wise ones. The ones who are so wise they make pretty big mistakes but actually learn from them and then are so full of wisdom that it's almost shocking? I have not one but a couple of them in my life. I'm continually bowled over by what I learn from them but this Wednesday, the one friend had the best idea. It was so great I could't help but steal it and make it my own.
She was talking about how she'd made some decisions that took her down some pretty bumpity roads and even though they were roads she could have happily done without, she got so much out of them at the end she couldn't really do without them. You know those sorts of roads? Most of us have been down them. Before I go any further, I should warn you this isn't a friend who is given to hyperbole or big emotional/dramatic anythings. In fact, some of her bumpy roads may have started with ignoring emotional stuff. She's one of those rock-solid, down-to-earth people that won't let you get your head too far into the clouds. Anyway, she was just reflecting on that and how even in her darkest, hardest times, she is still so far ahead of so much of the world and how she has so much to be grateful for. She was thinking that every day she would capture any image that reminded her of that feeling and do something - a collage, a display - so that she could be reminded of it when things weren't feeling so awesome and she'd forgotten all she had to be grateful for. I loved that idea. Though, I know myself and I knew that capturing an image per day was improbable and I would totally flunk at it. I also live in a teeny, tiny house with limited wall space (I have lots of windows and lots of books) so what would I do with all this gratitude? Sure it's important to collect it and be reminded but if it's closed off in something like an art journal, then it can slip out of your consciousness. I wanted something that would cue me without me having to remember it first. That led me to thinking about how I was grateful for Flannelberry and just having the space, energy, security, and will to dream about communicating with all of you. Of course the answer presented itself right then and there. My blog would be the perfect place for a weekly expression of gratitude. I will pick a regular day and write up something or post a picture that captures it for me. So, I doubt it will be Friday but for this week, why not? It was my birthday yesterday and I am grateful for my family and friends making it such a wonderful day. It was peaceful and full of generosity. I absolutely loved it and may have even relaxed. I feel so very lucky. Have a great weekend everyone. I'm sure, like most of the world, it seems that there's a lot of heart ache and not a lot of hope that humanity can overcome the sorrows it keeps inflicting on itself.
I have been thinking a lot today (and we have been discussing as a family) about the shock of France, the on going sorrow of Beruit and Kenya, and all of the other grief that's out there. And what keeps coming up is that even though it seems like a lot, there's so much more that's not horrible and chronic and shocking. But we don't hear that, we don't have that in our faces all day, every day. So, while you're thinking about the horrors and the atrocities and the sorrow, stand for an equal amount of time in gratitude and honouring. Really feel those things - be grateful for something very tangible, like your comfortable house, your safe family, clean water. So, every time you feel a bit of sorrow or overwhelmed or whatever else it is that sells news, take a minute to counteract that with gratitude. Your brain will thank you. |
AuthorI'm a 40-something writer and smallholder living in the wilds of BC with my family, our small herd of Nigerian Dwarf Goats, chickens, ducks, dogs, and cats. Archives
August 2017
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