Five minute Friday: May 11, 2014

Yes, that's a Sunday. I KNOW.

Grateful.

When most people are in their growing-up years, their formative years, you know, the pre-18 most formative years of them all, they're taught to be grateful. You want more toys? Be grateful for what you have. Don't like your dinner? Be grateful you have dinner at all because some people are going to bed hungry. (Ok, then send my pork chops to those kids in Africa. Sure, we all know what you were thinking.)

As you get older, you are supposed to be grateful on your own. With those life lessons pounded into your head as a kid, by now, they should be well settled and you should have LEARNED. Be grateful for what you have and stop asking for more. For me, I always worried that I was never grateful enough. I still am. If I feel myself start to complain, which happens a lot, or wish for more, which also happens fairly frequently, I am immediately sorry for it. I think I'm trying to protect myself against something bad happening - you know, karma, careening around the corner like the bus that it is, ready to slam me down just for being so ungrateful when so many people have it worse than I do. And as we all know, SOMEone always has it worse than you.

So. I suppose I have to be grateful in the small, everyday things and not fret that I'm not being grateful enough. Don't think about it, just be. When I appreciate those beautiful azaleas outside, that's good. When my daughter throws her arms around me without provocation and proclaims her love for me, that's enough. I'm grateful, and it's enough to know that I'm feeling it and not so worried about saying it.