Attitude of Gratitude?

Gratitude is all the rage these days.  Have you noticed?  In the last 2 weeks alone I’ve clicked on three articles and 1 video regarding gratitude.  I suppose it could be because it was Thanksgiving last week.  But it’s everywhere.  It’s supposed to make us happier, this gratefulness.  And it’s also part of my faith.  We are instructed to give thanks in all things.

But I’m not exactly sure how to do it. When I read the articles on gratitude, I immediately thought,

“Oh yes, I need to be grateful.   I’m going to work on being grateful.  Gratitude, I’m on it.  Gra-ti-tude.  Yep, so much to be thankful for.  Oooh, my pencil drawer needs organizing!”

I forgot about it before I had even started.   A few times the thought returned to me when I was in bed at night.  Looking out the window in the dark before drifting off to sleep, I would try to conjure up the things I’m thankful for but I would slip into sleep before getting past, “my boys are healthy.”

In church circles, I often hear the phrase, “I’m so blessed,” or “what a blessing.”   And there’s the thoughtful hashtag, of course (#blessed #omgsoblessed #blessedy’all).   While the intent with all of them is, I think, to express gratitude, the word has been used so often that it’s lost it’s meaning for me.  It’s become cliche.

In my yoga classes at the Y, there is one teacher who incorporates a time to be grateful at the end of each class.  She’ll say in a slow voice, “now it’s time for an attitude of gratitude.  Smile.  You have so much to be thankful for.  Now open up your heart chakra and beam that gratitude out into the universe.  You are a lucky ducky.”

Seriously.  She says that.  Every week.   I’ve considered leaving the class early just so I don’t have to hear her say, “lucky ducky.”   She is a warm and kind woman but that part of the class feels so contrived and silly.

Then there was Thanksgiving last week and the collective cup of gratitude overfloweth.  It did on Facebook anyway.  But since you know I don’t like to do what everyone else is doing, I wasn’t about to put an, “I’m grateful for…” post on the interwebs last Thursday.

So before I spiral into complete cynicism I’d like to find a way to express my gratitude that feels meaningful and purpose-filled.  Here’s what I’ve come up with so far.  I have a small notebook that I keep in my purse.  When something strikes me as beautiful or lovely or kind or what have you, I write it in my book.  In order for it to feel genuine for me, I try to steer clear of generic gratitude and focus instead on specifics.   So, for example, instead of writing, “I’m so thankful for my friends” last Thursday, I wrote, “for my friend, Kristy, with whom I’ve been sending obscure You’ve Got Mail texts and emails every Thanksgiving for the last 14 years, I give thanks.”

And the next day, instead of writing, “I’m thankful for my family,” I wrote instead, “for my wonderful, sweet, darling boys, who were so eager and excited to sled in the tiny patch of snow we found on our hike today and for the (mostly) peaceful car ride to the mountains to cut down our Christmas tree, I give thanks.  The day was so much better than last year’s excursion and so much better than I imagined it would be.  What a gift.”

So far writing in my notebook seems to be a good fit for me.  I can’t say for sure if it’s making me happier but I don’t know if that is my goal, per se.  It does make me more reflective, and, well, grateful.  So I guess it’s working!   I’m curious to hear how other people express gratitude in ways that are meaningful.  Talk to me, you lucky duckies.  What do you do to give thanks?