Thursday, January 15, 2009

Gratitude (copying Karynn)

I just read Karynn's most recent post. So true, what she says, about gratitude.  It's a powerful, marvelous thing.

I heard once that we would be wise to make a gratitude list of all the things we are grateful for and put it in a drawer, tucked away for later review.  Then, the next time we're frustrated, irritated, whining, angry, etc., we should make a list of the things we are complaining about.  Then, we take that list and compare it to the gratitude list. Usually they are essentially the same. Many times the things we complain about are the very blessings that, on a good day, we would recognize as the most important elements of our lives.

Changing the subject.

Kory is in Santa Barbara. He goes every couple of weeks, driving up and back on the same day (bless his heart). He meets with people who lost their homes in Montecito. He'll be here late tonight.  

I just got back from an errand-run to both post offices--took Pluto with me.  It's funny to see him do the whole "Bolt" thing and hang his head out the window of the truck. (Kory has the car.) Dogs, and animals of all kinds really, are so "in the moment" -- they don't get hung up on tomorrow or yesterday. I glanced over at him several times as I was driving--his head resting on the door, his ears flapping in the wind, and his nose high in the air, taking in the scents of the mountains. Being in the here-and-now is a powerful thing, and not something I manage to do all that often.  But sometimes I'll catch myself in the past or the future and can pull myself back to this moment. This is where God is. I can only feel his presence in the present.

And I am grateful for all of these blessings.

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