Thursday, November 29, 2007
Thanksgiving is a time to be grateful
“We’re not exactly the Waltons,” said a friend commenting on Thanksgiving with her family. In truth none of us are. Yet giving thanks and true gratitude are not about having material wealth or achieving the perfect moment.
Feeling a sense of emotional wealth and gratitude comes from a deep abiding acknowledgement of being with life as it is; noticing what touches our hearts in the midst of each ordinary day with its small inconveniences and sometimes overwhelming difficulties. At times it takes a great deal of courage and a sense of surrender to what life is presenting to have a grateful heart.
Kelly and Pete were two of the 16 people whose lives were devastated last week by the fire that burned down their Washington Street apartment, taking along with it all of their possessions and beloved pets. Several days after the fire, with no home to go to and feeling physically weak, Kelly said, “When everything is taken away, your health and all your possessions, what’s left is your life and your friends so I’m just focusing on being grateful to be alive.”
Gratitude is not cheery optimism or the power of positive thinking. These can seem hollow in the midst of some of life’s experiences. Gratitude is a way of seeing and a way of feeling that affects our emotional as well as physical heart. It’s not surprising that research supports that cardiovascular health is improved and the immune system strengthened by feeling thankful.
Taking a minute or two each night to ask ourselves what touched us today and what we feel grateful for will likely reveal many small and unexpected things, like simple moments of connection with another or with nature, that we may have otherwise forgotten. Last night, I remembered the kindness of the person I stopped to ask for directions when I was lost. He happened to live in the town I was looking for and as I followed, he drove down the most beautiful country road that crossed over a river and was lined with sun-dappled foliage. It was breath-taking.
Gratitude is a simple yet radical act because it will profoundly transform how we see and experience the world, creating and magnifying a momentum of generosity. When we gratefully acknowledge what it feels like to have someone extend a kind and tender hand when we need it, we’ll want to extend our hand to someone else. When we are thankful for a moment in nature, we are more likely to treat the earth with care. Thanks and giving are inextricably woven into a grateful heart.
Author Anais Nin wrote: “we don’t see the world as it is, we see the world as we are”.
Happy Thanksgiving!
– Amy Dunion, a registered nurse and licensed massage therapist, is Coordinator of The William W. Backus Hospital’s Center for Healthcare Integration. This column should not replace advice or instruction from your personal physician. E-mail Dunion and all of the Healthy Living columnists at healthyliving@wwbh.org
Feeling a sense of emotional wealth and gratitude comes from a deep abiding acknowledgement of being with life as it is; noticing what touches our hearts in the midst of each ordinary day with its small inconveniences and sometimes overwhelming difficulties. At times it takes a great deal of courage and a sense of surrender to what life is presenting to have a grateful heart.
Kelly and Pete were two of the 16 people whose lives were devastated last week by the fire that burned down their Washington Street apartment, taking along with it all of their possessions and beloved pets. Several days after the fire, with no home to go to and feeling physically weak, Kelly said, “When everything is taken away, your health and all your possessions, what’s left is your life and your friends so I’m just focusing on being grateful to be alive.”
Gratitude is not cheery optimism or the power of positive thinking. These can seem hollow in the midst of some of life’s experiences. Gratitude is a way of seeing and a way of feeling that affects our emotional as well as physical heart. It’s not surprising that research supports that cardiovascular health is improved and the immune system strengthened by feeling thankful.
Taking a minute or two each night to ask ourselves what touched us today and what we feel grateful for will likely reveal many small and unexpected things, like simple moments of connection with another or with nature, that we may have otherwise forgotten. Last night, I remembered the kindness of the person I stopped to ask for directions when I was lost. He happened to live in the town I was looking for and as I followed, he drove down the most beautiful country road that crossed over a river and was lined with sun-dappled foliage. It was breath-taking.
Gratitude is a simple yet radical act because it will profoundly transform how we see and experience the world, creating and magnifying a momentum of generosity. When we gratefully acknowledge what it feels like to have someone extend a kind and tender hand when we need it, we’ll want to extend our hand to someone else. When we are thankful for a moment in nature, we are more likely to treat the earth with care. Thanks and giving are inextricably woven into a grateful heart.
Author Anais Nin wrote: “we don’t see the world as it is, we see the world as we are”.
Happy Thanksgiving!
– Amy Dunion, a registered nurse and licensed massage therapist, is Coordinator of The William W. Backus Hospital’s Center for Healthcare Integration. This column should not replace advice or instruction from your personal physician. E-mail Dunion and all of the Healthy Living columnists at healthyliving@wwbh.org
# posted by ----------------- @ 1:40 PM 
