Tonight I am grateful for the ability to soothe oneself. I woke this morning on the proverbial “wrong side of the bed,” and while the day wasn’t terrible, it was more low key than I wanted it to be. There were no major issues or concerns, I was simply assailed by general ennui accompanied by occasional mild crankiness. It hasn’t fully subsided yet, so it is distinctly possible that I will go to sleep on the wrong side of the bed as well. Unless…I choose to soothe myself and do something to make myself feel better as the day closes. For me what that might look like is meditating a little on various elements of gratitude and engaging in calming actions to help quiet my mind. Tomorrow, after all, is another day with new possibilities that arrive with the fresh set of 24 hours.
Gratitude is an expression in response to something occurring inside of or around me. Dozens of such things happen over the course of a single day and if I am paying attention, I can sense the feeling of grateful acceptance arise in me. Here is an example: I love to be warm and it is freezing in my office. Today one of my coworkers brought a small heater in my office and set it on the floor by my desk. “No, no,” I protested weakly, “you keep it in your office.” But he insisted on leaving it with me, turning it on and aiming it toward me. The renewed protest died on my lips as the blessed heat radiated toward me. Without meaning to, I broke into a huge smile, relief flooding my soul even as the warmth flooded my office. Even now I smile as I recall the total delight brought about by such a small thing. It might be cold in there again tomorrow, but for this afternoon, it was toasty and lovely.
These are the small things for which I offer what I’ve come to call simple gratitude. They are not major in the scheme of things, but they can bring such moments of undeniable joy. The simple burst of pleasure I felt at the feeling of the heat in the cold room is the same as that I would experience at something of much larger magnitude. That might be hard to believe, but I know it to be true. In 2013 I intend to experience more joy–the internal, jumping up and down kind as well as the rejoicing in the good fortune of others kind I talked about the other night. Thanks to a little heater in a brief moment of utter bliss, I remember what that’s supposed to feel like. And for that, you’d better believe I’m grateful.
