Thanks!

IMG_0915Happy Thanksgiving, Gydle people! One of my favorite blogs, Gone Floatabout, written by friends with a serious sailing affliction and unparalleled wizardry with a camera, mentioned that some of the blogs they followed are posting the 50 things they’re most thankful for this year. Seems like a good idea. After all, it has been scientifically shown that being grateful is good for your health.

One of the most popular TED talks of all time is by a super-smiley guy named Shawn Achor. He says that if you spend just a few minutes a day thinking of just three things you’re grateful for, you’ll be much happier. Imagine how you’d feel after listing fifty! 

I think 50 is too many, because you just start listing random stuff. Plus I need to help my mom prepare dinner and time is limited. So here are twenty things I’m thankful for on this particular Thanksgiving, in the order in which they popped into my brain:

  1. Marc. He loves the whole turkey (me) – dark as well as light.
  2. Luc, and Brendan. They make my life warm and fuzzy.
  3. Family in general. They’re my tribe. They support, love and irritate me.
  4. Friends. They anchor me, challenge me and usually find my jokes funny.
  5. Fresh, clean water to drink and air to breathe.
  6. Trails to run and hike on. Also known as mental health access points.
  7. This amazing planet – its mountains, deserts, forests, oceans, and vast unpeopled places.
  8. A healthy body. This lets me do the stuff I love.
  9. My teachers, however they manifest themselves in my life.
  10. A roof over my head, food in my fridge, and clothes to wear.
  11. The fridge. And chocolate, of course.
  12. Civilization. I don’t think I’d do very well as a hunter-gatherer.
  13. Yoga. It has changed my life.
  14. Books and the people who write them. My refuge and alternate reality.
  15. Coffee. Especially when partaken with friends after yoga.
  16. The freedom to choose how I spend my time.
  17. People who pay me to play with words.
  18. Animals. My cat Minnie always finds my lap whenever I sit down.
  19. Wildness and wilderness. These places and creatures humble and inspire me.
  20. Science. It reminds us of our place in the cosmos and makes our lives ever better.

What are you thankful for this year? What have I left out?

 

4 thoughts on “Thanks!

  1. Since I had just been thinking about how the little things I am grateful for add up into a kind of big happiness, I read your twenty gratitudes with interest. Some of them blend together, but I don’t think the actual count is important – what is important is the recognition of the good. Hopefully we focus on the good bits and appreciate having them overpower the sad and painful bits.

    ♡♡♡

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