Gratitude — It’s All Around US

Thanksgiving is our favorite holiday. This year our kids will all be home, from as far-away as Alaska. We love to cook and many hands in the kitchen will make for fun and feast. Our hearts are bursting with Gratitude. This is what we often refer to as the Big “G”.

Gratitude is a Powerful Word

TOM — Google “Gratitude” and you will find ads for journals, journal prompts and ways to express gratitude. There is even an app for gratitude journaling.

Thankful is an internal sense of being pleased and relieved. Gratitude takes thankful to a whole new level. There is a need to express gratitude — defined as “a readiness to show appreciation and to return kindness.”

We love this analogy: “Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.” — William Arthur Ward.

How to Choose Gratitude

MF

• Focus on what you have (or have done). For example, I rarely get everything done on a To-Do List. But I make a habit of expressing gratitude at the end of the day for what I did accomplish.
• It is easy to express gratitude for a new car or iPhone, but overlook the everyday. The other day Tom commented how grateful he was that traffic was light and we hit all the lights green.
• Tom always fixes coffee in the am. I can do it, but I am no less of a wife for bagging a few extra ZZ’s. Inhale with gratitude.
• Holding onto grudges and resentments leaves no room for gratitude. Have you ever worked on a project and had someone else take the credit? Forgive. Do it for yourself. Just be grateful for the project.
• Most of us have been guilty of thinking “We worked hard; we deserve it. Why should we be grateful?” Choose Gratitude. #Entitlement is not pretty!

Why is Gratitude Important?

TOM — When MF expresses gratitude for a clean kitchen, I feel appreciated. Expressing this gratitude builds confidence in our relationship, like money in the bank. This capital comes in handy when I’ve procrastinated paperwork and mess up plans for a fun weekend. We are both disappointed, but Mary Frances’ appreciation keeps me from beating up on myself and her gratitude keeps her from lashing out in disappointment. We are both more accepting of our limitations and disappointment, grateful for our love and another weekend.

3 Simple Steps to Express Gratitude Daily

TOM — Do this simple exercise with your spouse.

1. Share Gratitude for things overlooked — things like fall shadows, health and fresh air
2. Share Gratitude for your spouse — like her kindness or offering a shoulder rub after a long day (The Superpower of Affirmation)
3. Share Gratitude for your gifts and talents — Don’t undervalue yourself. Recognizing your gifts and talents empowers you to Generosity (another Big “G”).

Be intentional with this little exercise and the list of things for which you are grateful will soar. To get you started, here is a post with excellent prompts for expressing gratitude for your spouse.

Start a habit this Thanksgiving of expressing gratitude and soar into 2022 with a Grateful heart.