With the events that happened a week ago, I have thought a lot about gratitude, gratitude for the simple things in life, those that I and others often take for granted.
I feel gratitude for life. With that I mean life in general, my life, human life, animal life, the natural world. Then there are things such as family, friends, being in love, motherhood. I am also grateful to be in good health, to be young, to have a roof over my head and food on the table.
I am thankful to have civil liberties, to have a good education, to be able to write and read. I am so happy to have discovered and integrated an amazing blogging community, I realised how strong and supporting it is after I posted on the bleak topic of the Paris attacks on Saturday.
Then searching for beauty and positivity all around over the past few days, marked by dark clouds and disbelief, I realised that I should be grateful for my eyesight enabling me to see BEAUTY, to see COLOURS, to spot STORIES to tell everywhere. Then there is my imagination and my memories that I don’t want to miss.
I am thankful that things such as humanity, optimism, positivity, love, diversity, trust, and instinct exist. I am grateful for peace and safety, something that many people lost their lives for, I really hope that these things will stay.
I am thankful for every good teacher I had, and for every good teacher there is. We often forget the importance of good teachers.
But how can I express my gratitude? How can I express my gratitude for all these things?
Maybe by being creative, by writing about it, by living life to its fullest and seeing life from a positive angel. Then by thanking others for what they have done.
Sometimes gratitude can be expressed through a smile, a nod, a sign of the hand, a ‘thank you’, a letter, or even just some positive thoughts. My daughter who cannot speak yet, knows that a big smile and a squeal of happiness is a great way of expressing gratitude.
What are the things you take for granted that you feel gratitude for? How do you express gratitude?
Thank you very much for reading. (see?)
This is my contribution to the #1000speak linkup. This month’s theme is Gratitude, find out more on the #1000speak for Compassion website.
© Solveig Werner 2015. All rights reserved.
Solveig Werner 
“But how can I express my gratitude? How can I express my gratitude for all these things?
Maybe by being creative, by writing about it, by living life to its fullest and seeing life from a positive angel. Then by thanking others for what they have done.”
I couldn’t think of a better way of doing so myself, Solveig. 🙂 This was a wonderful post. Simply put, and from the heart.
I’ve been actively practicing gratitude for the past couple years. Before I go to bed at night, I write down (or say to myself) one thing I’m grateful for that day. Not only has it helped me become a more compassionate person, but it’s also opened my eyes and given me a more positive outlook on life. As the saying goes, “The universe rewards a grateful heart.”
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Oh Sara, thank you so much for your kind comment.
Your exercise does sound something great to do. I don’t do that, but I try to be a positive person, and I remind myself that I shall be grateful for simple things, the things I take for granted.
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It was actually something I started to help me during a bout of situational depression. And it definitely helped. 🙂
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I think you show gratitude by giving back. By showing us beauty in a city that has recently seen ugliness. By your creativity. By sharing that smile and squeal of delight from your daughter and echoing it in your words. You do give it back. And to that, I say thank you in return. And I say it with a big smile 🙂
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Trent, thank you so much for your kind words, they really do mean a lot.
I will continue to share the strange beauty that I spot here and there.
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You are welcome. Yes, continue to share pictures of the beauty you find and your thoughts about cultures French and German as well as others you may notice along the way. Maybe your spot of beauty on the Internet is just a small point of light, but isn’t the beauty of the night sky the combined effect of all of those tiny points of light?
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Again, thank you Trent!
I try to share my happiness, thoughts and optimism with others. I have realised that when I smile, people greet me in the street/smile back even if they were not smiling before. So here on the internet I try to do the same. I guess you are right about the night sky.
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🙂
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This is a beautiful post, Solveig. There is so much to be grateful for and I, too, wonder what is the best way to show such gratitude. Sometimes I believe that a simple ‘thank you’ or a smile can make all the difference. It’s small, but don’t actions speak louder than words?
It seems odd to think about, especially with the weight that writers put into words, but sometimes I don’t know what words to say. In that case, when words fail me, perhaps the most important part is trying to show gratitude and not necessarily ‘how’…
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Thank you Melanie!
You are doing a month of thanks, I do guess that you are showing some gratitude that way.
I think that even positive thoughts can sometimes do a lot. Words won’t have any impact if we don’t mean them, actions will always have some sort of effect.
I agree, if you show your gratitude then that is worth a 1000 words. Just think of all the kids that have to say thank you for things they don’t like or don’t want, then as adults we continue.
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I wanted to do Month of Thanks because I fear I don’t have the opportunity to share my gratitude with those around me. Additionally, I wanted to do it so that other people could get involved, could think about what they were thankful for. After all, gratitude is to touch other people so that it might spread.
And I understand about children saying thank you for things they don’t want. However, I think that is a way to teach us how to be grateful for things. We may not mean it at that age, but as we grow we learn to understand what it means to say ‘thank you’ even if we don’t mean it. We do it because the person who is giving us something is thinking about us. For that we should be grateful, yes?
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I will make sure that I read those month of thanks posts!
We should definitely be grateful for the kindness of the other person’s thoughts. 🙂
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Every day when I walk my laps along the waterfront and up through town and around again, I thank God and mother nature for the beauty of the world. I love the colors even in the darkest days of the winter. There is so much to see and be thankful for if only we take the time to look around us and pull our minds out of the deep hole we sometimes fall into.
And Thank you for being you and suggesting that people be thankful for the gifts we sometimes take for granted. Plus, Thank You for your lovely pictures.
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You know what Gwynn, in the first version I actually listed that I was grateful for being me and not pretending or trying to please others, it took me time to get there.
Thank you so much for your kind words. Speaking of colour in winter, the picture was taken in January…
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I am grateful for your post. 🙂
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Oh thank you!
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I feel grateful for you, your creativity, gentleness and inspiration, Solveig. Thank you for this wonderful post. It softened my heart. There is so much power in gratitude.
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Oh Gulara, I too feel grateful for you. Knowing you has boosted my creativity, and confidence! You are such a supportive soul!
Aw, now don’t get all mushy on me 🙂
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Solveig, thank you so much for this encouraging post for #1000speak. I have just posted my contribution which looked at some of the darkest moments in my life, visiting them and seeing the good and being thankful for the lights which shone through the darkness. There was actually a night sky full of shining stars beaming their light.
How are things in Paris? I’ve been thinking of you.
Take care and best wishes,
Rowena
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Hey, things in Paris are ok. It’s getting colder and wetter every day… but people seem to have regained their spirits, but then I am a bit outside of where all the buzz takes place. I have been told that people have become more attentive, rare are those that listen to music on the metro.
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Thanks for the update, Solveig. I am quite intrigued about how people respond to traumatic events. After the siege in Sydney, I know people who totally avoided Martin Place where it took place and others who were determined to go back there and not let terrorists change things. My kids have been a bit unsettled and while we live a bit outside Sydney, my husband works at a university in Sydney and my daughter is performing at a pretty big event with the school choir and is in the city all this week staying with a friend’s family. She asked us where she could get a suit of armour last night and so we had a talk about what she could do if there was a terrorist attack and I wrote a post about it today: https://beyondtheflow.wordpress.com/2015/11/25/a-conversation-no-parent-should-have/
I think it’s interesting that people are being more alert and not listening to music on the Metro. I like the scouting motto: “Be Prepared” and you can’t be prepared if you’re not paying attention.
Take care. We still need to carpe diem seize the day but just need to be a little more alert. xx Rowena
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Lovely post Solveig. I love that you include being creative as a way to express gratitude, and even more wonderful that you recognise your daughter’s smile and squeal of happiness as gratitude. It’s so easy for people to overlook these expressions, yet to me they are often the most heartfelt.
Thank you for joining in the link-up!
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Thank you Yvonne. Gratitude can be shown in so many ways, that we often overlook.
I do hope that I will join the linkup more often in the future.
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