Gratitude is a skill that you practice
an Internet poem by Danny Howie Bloom
(c) 2005
Gratitude is a skill that you practice
and get better at
said a third-grader in school one day
yes, gratitude is something we learn
as we get older
accumulating wisdom and knowledge
but sometimes we forget
gratitude is something to be thankful for
it is a skill worth practicing
over and over again
until we get it right
we need to appreciate what's good in our lives
instead of always complaining
looking at the negative side of things.
yes, gratitude is a skill that you practice
and get better at
month by month
year by year
and over a lifetime
we might finally learn how to say
thank you
thank you to the universe
thank you to God
thank you to our parents
thank you to our loved ones
thank you to our children
thank you to our teachers
gratitude is a skill that you practice
until you get it just right
and it doesn't happen overnight
it takes a lifetime of rehearsals
awareness and an open mind
to fully appreciate all the good things
that have come our way
on this journey from not being to being
on this pilgrimmage among the stars
on this pathway to enlightenment and aha!
Learn to say thank you
in as many languages as you can master
and tell it to everyone you love and care for
thank you
thank you
thank you
merci,
gracias,
shieh shieh,
arrigato
and as you practice gratitude
day by day
year by year
Thanksgiving after Thanksgiving...
gratitude will become you
it will suit you fine
and you will become one
with thankfulness.
Gratitude is more than a 9-letter word,
it is a gift from life.
Use it!
(c) 2005 Danny Howie Bloom
FREE TO SEND TO ANYONE BY EMAIL ON THE INTERNET OR IN PRINT
posted by DANIELBLOOM | 8:14 PM
3 Comments:
The above poem was directly inspired by the inspired writing of Susan DeMersseman, a psychologist and parent educator in the USA. The essay she wrote that touched me and brought forth this poem is here:
Thank you, Susan!
http://24hour.startribune.com/24hour/opinions/story/1861671p-9768996c.html
titled: "Gratitude training"
November 23, 2004
It's a little ironic that the season in which we give thanks and the one in which our children are making their holiday wish lists come so close together.
We try to give our children so much, but sometimes forget to give them the greatest gift, the capacity to appreciate and to feel grateful. Without that we can never give them enough. We may want to give them many things, but how do we do this and not give them a sense of entitlement? This, like most aspects of parenting, is a fine balance.
Many of our own parents tried to make us feel grateful by pointing out the starving children in some far-off land. This strategy often resulted in us offering to send those children the horrible casserole or ugly tennis shoes. In spite of those responses, many of us grew up with far less than our children have, but with a greater sense of enjoyment and appreciation. Just a glance at the sea of media in which our children swim gives us a big hint as to how this happened. All around are material things that they (and we) are led to believe we must have - that we have a right to have.
But there are little ways to swim against this tide. The most important is simply being an example of appreciation for the things in our own lives. It can rub off. The source of gratitude can be anything - the sight of glowing cumulus clouds, our warm home, or a nice meal.
They may respond with eye rolling and an, "Oh, Mom/Oh, Dad" (as if we're so sappy). But someday when we say, "Come here a minute, look at that sunset," a big cool teenager might look and say, "Oh, yeah, and I like the way the sun streams from under the edges of the clouds." When that happened to me, I was grateful that I had put up with all the eye rolling.
In my work as a school psychologist, a mother with a rather crabby 9-year-old came to see me for help. We worked out a way to instill a bit more gratitude - but not with reminders of how fortunate he was as a response to his complaints. Instead, we focused on bedtime. She started by spending a few minutes talking about what had gone on in her day that she was grateful for: a friend who complimented her work, the polite clerk at the store, or the quiet evening with not too much laundry. Then she asked him if anything good happened in his day. He got the idea, shared a few things, and it soon became a ritual. Like the Bing Crosby song:
"When I'm worried and I can't sleep I count my blessings instead of sheep And I fall asleep counting my blessings."
What she most appreciated is that this outlook started seeping into his day.
I recently worked with a second-grade class at the teacher's request. She was concerned that she seemed to have a lot of complainers in the group and so we started gratitude training with them.
One day I began a lesson by reviewing and asked what they remembered from our previous discussions. One little boy said, "Well, gratitude is like a skill that you practice and get better at."
I'd never really taught those words, but he had put our lessons together into that sublime understanding, one that takes some of us many years to reach.
Part of what I do in working with youngsters is to help them be aware of what is good in their lives. With the right perspective, there's so much to appreciate. Without it, there will never be enough. And only the things they don't have will seem important.
So along with all the "stuff" on the wish lists this year, we can add our own item: appreciation. It might even help to start by letting our kids know that, regardless of their appearance, their SAT scores, or their athletic ability, they are a source of gratitude in our lives.
(c) 2004 CSM newspaper
What I'm Thankful For
The Daily Union,
Thanksgiving week, in
November 2003:
Linda Gilmore
The Daily Union
I remember a hymn we used to sing in church, “Count Your Blessings.” It’s a good hymn and when I start feeling down I often think of that song and am reminded that I do have a lot to be thankful for.
So I’m going to count my blessings.
I’m thankful for my telephone. Maybe that seems odd. After all, it is often an instrument of annoyance, ringing at inconvenient times and for generally commercial reasons. But unless you’ve lived for long periods of time without a phone, you don’t realize how complicated life becomes without one. I have, so I know. Calling the school because you have a sick child, calling the doctor, calling your family, even job hunting becomes much harder without a phone. So I’m thankful that we have a phone.
I’m thankful for my family. I know, that’s such a cliche, but it’s true. We’re not perfect, but we generally like each other and family get-togethers are filled with laughter and love. My parents gave me a strong foundation to build upon and I’ve learned from their example. My brothers still know how to make me laugh with my mouth full.
My kids are fun and intelligent and I’m proud of them. They’ve introduced me to all kinds of music, from Dave Matthews to Linkin Park. They keep me on my toes and I’ve learned a lot from being their mother.
I’m thankful for my husband. Yes, he’s part of my family, but I want to mention him specifically because I realized a long time ago that he’s a pretty amazing husband. Bob has kept me laughing when I was down, been patient with my many shortcomings and been a steady source of encouragement for the last 26 years. My life has been enriched because he’s in it.
I’m thankful for Thanksgiving. It’s a holiday that tends to be overlooked, at least by the retail world. It has not become terribly commercial, yet. It doesn’t lend itself to gift-giving, though it does mark the official beginning of the Christmas shopping season. The idea of giving thanks instead of getting gifts is foreign to basic human nature. So it’s a good idea to be reminded at least once a year to be thankful.
This year, when you gather with family and friends for your Thanksgiving meal, think about how blessed you are and make a vow to keep that in mind throughout the year. And if you find ways to share your blessings with others, you will realize the truth of the Christmas season that is about to come — it really is more blessed to give than to receive.
posted by lindaruth at 12:46 PM
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