Day 157

Something learned:

"If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else’s, we’d grab ours back." ~ Regina Bratt

I have problems, but I'm dealing with them. A sick relative. Difficulty of keeping in touch with distant family and friends. Worrying about achieving dreams before I die. If these are my worst problems, I'm very very thankful.

Something I'd like to get better at:

Finding gifts for people. I know my husband so well, and already I struggle with gifts for him, let alone other people. I just don't seem to know how to find good gifts.

Today I was thankful for:

1. Successfully doing 50 situps this morning
2. My singing coach telling me that I did a good job on Holle Rache.
3. Making it to the kid's camp on time despite traffic
4. Kid playing quietly in my office allowing me to get in 3 hours of work.
5. Husband making dinner since I came home late.

Looking forward to:

Picking up a new hobby after my singing lessons wind down. The world is full of possibilities!

Day 98

Something learned:

I started my first gratitude project on a whim more than a decade ago. My very first stated goal in life was to "be happy" and I decided that I wanted to do something tangible towards achieving that goal.

Doing gratitude on and off over the years, I've found that it achieves a number of things. First, the exercise of looking for items to list forces me to reflect on the good things that had happened that day. Secondly, I have never had a day where it was completely impossible to come up with 5 items that I was thankful for, telling me that I am indeed managing to maintain a happy life.

I've found that focusing on the positive instead of the negative allows me to let go of the bad stuff, to accept that they happened but not allow them permanent residence in my narrative.

Today I was thankful for:

1. Getting back the kid's forgotten violin
2. The BH library having a book drop that I could reach from my window so I didn't have to get out of the car
3. Fixing the monday morning code bug quickly despite working on little sleep.
4. Hubby reading the kid her bedtime story so I could rest
5. Having this gratitude project to keep me focused on the positive

Looking forward to:

Upcoming Room Escape game this month!

Be thankful for all the things

My daily gratitude highlights the small things that occur every so often. Today, on Thanksgiving, I would like to give thanks for the big ones, the things that truly make me feel fortunate to be alive

1. My family

2. My friends

3. My health, both physical and mental

4. My career

5. My safety

6. Opportunities for learning

7. Opportunities to fulfill dreams

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. May your blessings be abundant!