While walking in a local park this week, I came across an installation called The Gratitude Project. It invited walkers to consider what they are thankful for in 2020 and add a post, or as many as you’d like, to the growing gratitude fence. Everything needed was provided in a cute, handmade box similar to the Little Free Libraries popping up in yards across the country. It was fascinating and heartwarming to read the notes. The following are a few examples:
Grateful to slow down!
Thankful for toilet paper, pets who love me, staying home from work and shorts.
Having mom and dad home.
No commuting.
My new puppy.
Wisdom, expansive love, misty mornings.
Cheap airfare and cancelling with no fees.
Stopped dying my hair and love it!
Surprise text that became my girlfriend.
Love cinnamon in my coffee, birds outside my window.
Love being with my furry friends.
The color of the sky.
Cozy clothes all day long.
Elastic waistbands.
Grateful for morning sunrises.
Jesus
Grateful for the time I got to reflect and work on myself and eventually came to love myself.
Got to know me again.
Gained 40 pounds and am happy about it! (I want to meet this person.)
Grateful to have time….period.
Even though there has been bad stuff, we continue to find JOY!
My favorite has to be FOR JESUS! He is all we need! A comfort in times of trouble. And no, I didn’t write it but wish I had. Mine was on a much baser level - grateful for elastic waistbands and spandex. What can I say? I’m so shallow.
A common theme was simplicity and time. It’s not that they weren’t available pre-COVID. We just didn’t choose to make them a priority or recognize their value. Our lives were too noisy to appreciate the simple blessings of an ordinary day.
Life is like a train track – parallel paths of joy and sorrow. 2020 is a glaring example. They aren’t mutually exclusive. You can be in the midst of suffering and still experience joy. The joy doesn’t relieve the pain, but it can buffer it even if just momentarily. In fact, the pain itself may even enhance and give new appreciation for the beauty and blessings we take for granted – a magnificent sunrise/sunset, nature, our family. A rainbow after a storm might be just the encouragement you need when going through any of the storms of life.
Often times I feel guilty about celebrating the joys in life while so many others are suffering. I suppose it seems disrespectful of their pain. However, the more I thought about it, not appreciating the blessings in our lives is what’s disrespectful. Nothing gives God more pleasure than seeing His children enjoyHis creation and blessings with delight and gratitude.
Thanksgiving this year will be lonely for many, with ample time to choose to reflect on the plethora of things we can be grateful for rather than the empty chairs at our tables. In fact, I’m sure there are plenty of people who are grateful and relieved they don’t have to travel or sit through an extended family dinner where dysfunction reigns supreme. Add in a few cocktails, a controversial election, and you’ve got an improved explosive device (IED) waiting to detonate. This may be the perfect year to shelter in place.
I applaud the Edwards family of New Canaan for encouraging us to choose an attitude of gratitude. May we all follow their example and choose to fill our plates with a hefty serving of gratitude today and every day because, as St. Paul exhorts, "rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thes 5:18).
Will leave you with one last thought to ponder this week…
