Harder Than You Think, Unfortunately

Once upon a time, I heard a suggestion.  I'm offering this tidbit today while fully admitting to unintended plagiarism since I cannot find the sermon/talk/video or whatever/whoever it was that brought this to my attention.

It's about gratitude.

Before going to sleep every night, remember to give thanks for 3 things that happened during the past 24 hours for which you are grateful.

It starts out easy:

• Every breath.
• Opposing thumbs.
• Balance.
• Sight.
• Hearing.
• Family.
• Good job.
• Pleasant weather.
• Driving safely.
• The sun at the exact distance from the earth affording life.

Within a few seconds, you can name hundreds of I-am-thankful-fors.  That's good.  Start there.  The point is to give thanks for what we've been given.

Eventually, you'll know that these three things should be in recognition of gifts that you might have a difficult time noticing.  Not wanting to repeat yourself, you'll know that it needs to be something that almost surprises you - either in its simplicity or complexity.

Here's what happening to me.  I lie in bed and begin to list those 3 things.  Sometimes, they come easy but lately, much less so.  I get one or two and then start freezing up.  What happened today?  What did I notice that I'm not remembering?  I try harder to remember things that I didn't notice!  What's wrong with me? There has to be billions of things I can be thankful for - why can't I think of one more?

Sometimes, I fail.  I end up falling asleep before I finish.

An interesting side-effect of this practice means that during the day, I'm more cognizant of the accountability that I'll face at night. If I can't remember one more before falling asleep, it's OK because I'm finding that while trying to build my list, I'm giving thanks all day long!

Since I wrote this today, it will be on my list tonight:  "I thank you, God, that You're helping me learn to be more grateful!"

Two to go...