I'm breaking in my brand-new laptop with a list of things I'm thankful for, as encouraged by Bethesdalily, whose write-off
has caused bursts of blessings to blossom throughout Epinions like
bright November flowers. It seems like a sure way to get this new piece
of equipment off to a good start. I hope it lasts me as long as the
first one, which I received for my 25th birthday, did. While I hated to
retire that one, I can't help being grateful for the timing, as it
finally went kaput just before Black Friday, allowing me to get the
replacement at the most affordable time of the year. I'm grateful, too,
that I had enough in the bank to cover it. But then, I have a lot to be
grateful for, as I do every year. Big fan of quotes that I am, I thought
it might be fun to compile a few gratitude quotes and use them as a
jumping-off point for this very worthwhile exercise. So here we go...
“A
thankful heart is a happy heart. I'm glad for what I have; that's an
easy way to start.” Isn't it, though? This is a line from the
VeggieTales video Madame Blueberry, the main song of which is a
litany of gratitude concluding with, “That's why I say thanks every
day.” I don't always remember to do that, but I should. I have friends
who make it a point to regularly compile lists of things for which
they're thankful, and it always brightens my day to read them and also
to realize that I could list a lot of those same things. When things
aren't going so well, give it a whirl, and I bet it will make you feel
better. No matter how bad things get, there's always something to be
grateful for.
“I guess I was raised never to question my
blessings.” This is a line from Rose, the sage woman who is one of my
favorite characters on LOST.
I wish the show had used her more often; an extra dose of her serenity
could have gone a long way in all that frenzy. Rose is all about
acceptance. When life throws bad things her way, she bears it
gracefully. And when something good comes along, she views it as a gift.
Everything is a blessing or, at worst, a trial to be weathered with the
help of those things and people that are blessings. It's a good way to
look at life. And let me just take this opportunity to say that no 2010
gratitude reflection from me would be complete without mentioning LOST,
a show that has provided me with so much intellectual and spiritual
stimulation, that has deepened several friendships, that sparked the
most intense creative period of my life and that gave me so many
wonderful characters to fall in love with. LOST lost this fangirl money, but everything I gained far made up for the dent in my wallet.
“Thank
you for this precious day, these gifts you give to me. My heart, so
full of love for you, sings praise for all I see.” Isn't that a
beautiful thought? It's from one of John Denver's loveliest songs, Falling Leaves,
which uses this expansive gratitude as a jumping-off point for
supplication on behalf of others. It's a song that discusses how
wonderful the world can be but then acknowledges how many people in the
world are disenfranchised. It makes me think of those St. Jude's
Children's Hospital commercials: “Give thanks, and give...” If you truly
have a grateful spirit, a natural outgrowth of that is to want to
extend your blessings to those who could use a hand.
“Pick your
diamond, pick your pearl, 'cause there is beauty in the world.” I just
came upon this Macy Gray song within the last couple of months, as it's
one that's in the regular rotation on the mall radio. Every time it
comes on the air, I can't help grinning from ear to ear. It's just so
life-affirming. I hear a lot about how much awful stuff is going on in
the world today, and it just becomes very exhausting and dispiriting.
This is a song that exuberantly encourages us to instead focus on the
all that is right with the world. Each of us sees beauty in different
things, but I think that everyone who takes the time to really look
around can find something of beauty capable of brightening up the
grayest day.
“For making me welcome, thank you.” This is the last line in the chorus of The Tinker,
a gorgeous song by John Reynolds of the Irish Rovers. The speaker
wanders from place to place, seeking shelter with strangers, and he
always manages to find it. The kindness of others sustains him. It
sustains all of us. We may not spend our lives as vagabonds, but how
many times has your day been improved by a kind word or gesture from
someone you randomly encounter? It happens to me all the time, and I
hope that I've been on the other end of it, too. As a cashier at the
mall, I try my best to treat every person I encounter with respect and
friendliness. Sometimes folks just need someone to vent to, and I'm glad
to be that person too. Any little thing I can do to make somebody's day
a bit better, I try to do it; I know what a difference it makes when
I'm on the receiving end, as I often am. You don't have to take someone
into your home to be hospitable; just take them into your heart for a
minute or two, and it can really have an impact.
“There are some things you can't share without ending up liking each other.” This quote, from the first Harry Potter
book, just makes me smile, and it's a great one for expressing the
pleasure I've found in kindred spirits. When I was growing up, I often
felt like an oddball. Epinions was one of the first sites I found after I
really began immersing myself in the Internet, and I discovered that
there are actually a lot of people out there who love the same things I
do. This quote refers to a particularly powerful bonding experience, but
I find that equally powerful is compatibility. As C. S. Lewis said,
“Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another,
'What! You too? I thought I was the only one.'” I'm grateful to Epinions
for introducing me to friends with whom I share something important,
whether that's a beloved book, a favorite style of music, an engrossing
TV show, an entertaining movie... You get the idea. I'm glad Epinions
has given me a platform to write about these things and has introduced
me to wonderful friends who understand just where I'm coming from.
“I
thank you for the kindness and the times when you got tough, and Papa, I
don't think I've said 'I love you' near enough.” The late great Dan
Fogelberg honored his father with Leader of the Band,
one of my favorite songs ever and an exercise in gratitude if I ever
heard one. Like him, I'm lucky enough to have wonderful parents, and I'm
sure I don't tell them that often enough. As Abraham Lincoln said,
“Everything I am or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.” I can't
imagine better parents than the ones I have. I owe them everything.
“Thank you for being a friend.” The Golden Girls
has one of the best theme songs ever, and I'm happy to repeat it here. I
have some pretty fantastic friends. Some have been a part of my life
for as long as I can remember; some came along much later. Some of them
I've never even met. If you got all of them together in one room, you'd
have an eclectic mix indeed, but all of them have contributed greatly to
my happiness. I'm grateful for Facebook, too, for helping me to keep in
contact with many of them.
“I've got a hand holding my hand. It's not a hand you can see...” This is part of John Bucchino's Grateful, recorded by Art Garfunkel for his Across America
concert in the 1990s. It's a beautiful song for Thanksgiving and the
whole year, and I especially love this verse. It reminds me of several
things. Footprints in the Sand. God's constant presence. Thestrals.
J. K. Rowling's marvelous invention of creatures who perform an
important service and can only be seen by those who have witnessed
death. Harry initially sees them as grotesque, but they eventually serve
as a reassurance that, as Dumbledore once told him, those who we've
loved and lost never truly leave us. And Pushing Daisies.
Ned and Charlotte love each other but can never touch. One of the many
ways they come up with to cope is to hold their own hands at the same
time, pretending they are holding each other's. A very sweet image for
the ways that people separated by physical distance can stay connected.
“You
are a very fine person, Mr. Baggins, and I am very fond of you, but you
are only quite a little fellow in a wide world, after all.” My all-time
favorite quote, it reminds me that I should be open to amazing things
happening and willing to help them come about, but I should approach
them with an attitude of humility. I should be grateful for being a part
of them instead of just figuring they happened because I myself did
something remarkable to bring them about. I hope I'm a fine person, but
I'll never forget that I am quite a little fellow in a wide world, after
all. And, as Bilbo acknowledged, “Thank goodness.”
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