I have hit a wall tonight. After a long week, I also spent all day at a conference yesterday, concluding by taking the conference guest speaker out to dinner. I left my house at around 7:20 a.m. and got home at about 8:15 p.m. It was a long day. I’ve been waking early too. Yesterday (Saturday) I woke at 5:00 a.m.–about 30 to 45 minutes later than I usually do and this morning, though I had determined to sleep in, I woke at 7:20 a.m. So much for sleeping in. I plan to make up for the long week by going to bed relatively early tonight.
So tonight is a good one for simple gratitude, for offering thanksgiving for the many daily blessings that are part of my life.
- Today I went to the grocery store and bought food and other items that will carry me through the next two weeks or so. I am always grateful for and aware of having access to good quality food and to have the means with which to purchase it. I have been on a very tight budget over the last two years but have been fortunate enough to find ways to feed myself as economically as possible. There were occasional days when my food supplies were low enough that on a given day I didn’t eat enough calories to feel satisfied or full; but even at those times I still had something to eat, no matter how basic or non-filling it was. I have never gone hungry. During my time volunteering at the Berkeley Food Pantry I can tell you that I saw some people who were truly hungry, who depended on the food we distributed to keep them and their families from going hungry.
- I am grateful to have a job that provides me enough income to live. And while I live modestly by some standards, I am safe, comfortable, and warm. I work with good people, enjoy the work that I do, and am fortunate to have a full-time job with benefits. So many people do not have those once “basic” things that are now luxuries.
- I am grateful for the relatively good functioning of my body. While I, like many people my age, have my share of minor physical ailments, for the most part I enjoy good health, ease of movement, relatively solid mental functioning (with the periodic moments of forgetfulness) and overall wellbeing. Each day as I offer metta (good wishes) I include the expression, “May I be healthy and strong in body, mind, and spirit.” And for the most part I am.
- My family and friends remain the most important blessing in my life for which I am most grateful. I am grateful for their constant presence in my life and I remember them in my prayers and well wishes every day. I enjoy being in close contact with my sisters, and while I need to reach out a little more regularly to a couple of my siblings, not a single week goes by without my connecting with at least one of them. I love being able to spend time with my sisters. I am looking forward to spending time with my oldest sister to start planning her vegetable garden for 2013. It has been way too many years since I’ve planted vegetables, and though I have a relatively small yard (which I know for a fact is inhabited by at least one rabbit), I am strongly considering planting a few vegetable plants and herbs for the first time in at least 1o years. I am definitely looking forward to that.
As usual, when I start pondering the simple things I am grateful for, my list grows and I find more than a few things to write about. I am grateful for the wellspring of thoughts, ideas, creative energy and time I am carving out for myself. I still have a lot more to do in this, but am making good progress. I look forward to laying my head down to rest this evening, and I will do so grateful for having a place to rest surrounded by all the goodness in my life. And that is a very good thing.
