Gratitude

[lillibet]

Several of my friends have been doing a meme where they post at least one thing every day for which they are grateful. I've enjoyed their entries, but haven't felt the need to join in. I am so grateful every day for the mainstays of my life--my family, my friends, my community--and for the extraordinary luck of living so luxuriously from any historical or global perspective, both in terms of material goods and personal freedoms.

But tonight I found myself thinking something that I think most of us forget most of the time. I wanted crackers and the box in the pantry had been emptied, so I went downstairs and got another box from the backup supply. And I thought that I am deeply grateful to the person who thought to buy an extra box for just such an occasion. That'd be me.

I think it's really important to be grateful to ourselves for making the choices and doing the things that make our lives what we want them to be. Full of crackers and dreams and good books and art and nifty people. I hear my friends putting themselves down so often, blaming themselves for all the bad in their lives and failing to celebrate that we do often manage to make ourselves happy in ways little and big.

So, everyone think of something good that you did for yourself today. If you want to share it, I'd love to hear it, but no pressure. If you can't think of anything, then I encourage you to do something nice for yourself tomorrow. And then say thank you. Treat yourself kindly.

Comments

[dpolicar]

(smile)
I invited a cool friend of mine to hang out and chat with me for a while!

[lillibet.livejournal.com]

That was generous to both of us!

[lifecollage.livejournal.com]

Yesterday morning, I paid all of my bills and plotted out the next few....and realized that I had enough there to throw hundreds at savings and still have enough to live my life the way I want to this month.

I've never been this financially stable in my adult life, and it's a direct result of the choices I've made over the past ten years. One big one being my choice of life partner.

I'm grateful to myself for making those choices. Go me.

[lillibet.livejournal.com]

Isn't competence--especially in an area where you've been lax in the past--just a fantastic feeling?

[lifecollage.livejournal.com]

It's not even just the competence (though that'd be enough) -- it's the relief. One worry taken off my plate, to give me space to enjoy myself more.

Yay, woo.

[kellyjmf.livejournal.com]

I made my kid a witch costume out of a black t-shirt from a conference I went to.

[lillibet.livejournal.com]

Ooh! A red-headed witch!

Starting young

[kellyjmf.livejournal.com]

She wanted to be cute but dangerous. Don't we all...

[radioactiverich.livejournal.com]

Well I didn't do it today, but what I did was bought myself a good guitar which encourages me to play more often, which helps me play better, which makes me really happy. Music is good. (That to me is a serious understatement.)

[lillibet.livejournal.com]

That was really nice of you!

[dietrich.livejournal.com]

I'm thanking myself today for getting back to the gym for the first time in a couple months, and not just for getting there, but for doing exercises that felt good, at a pace and level that was gentle, and for not pushing too hard and injuring myself. I knew I'd done enough when I got home and wanted lots of protein, but wasn't sore and grumpy and wanting to sleep for the rest of the day.

Thanks, me.