Thoughts over coffee

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

I have read many of Melody Beattie's writings over the years, more in my high school, college and law school years than recently. They often gave me a different perspective on things that were happening in my life and on the behavior of people in my life. I also learned about being grateful for the things I had in my life. But I didn't always feel grateful for everything. Then I met a wonderful group of women who taught me about gratitude. For the past ten years, I have learned from these friends what it means to be grateful and how to be grateful for the things in my life, even the little things, like homemade chocolate chip cookies! It's easy for me to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of everyday life, which differs for each of us, and to forget to be grateful but most days I remember to be grateful for at least one thing. Sometimes it's not until I'm crawling into bed at night that I remember I don't want to close out this day without being grateful for something. Usually on days like that the something is the warm, furry cat lying nearby or that my husband isn't snoring...yet! lol Whether it's a good day filled with things to be happy and grateful for or a trying, tiring day when gratitude is more difficult to muster,it's a reminder, for me, that no matter what life brings, I still have many things to be thankful for.

Amy