An Attitude of Gratitude

It can be so hard to stay positive sometimes- especially in times of trouble or stress. Believe me, I get it… Lately life has not been good to me, but I am still trying my hardest to stay positive and strong.

A couple of years ago, I read a post on Facebook about “an attitude of gratitude”. I can’t remember who posted it now, but the message stuck with me. The author wrote about how it’s so important to focus on the good things in your life and to start each day with a prayer of gratitude. She talked about how much her mental health improved when she started this practice, so I decided to give it a shot.

At first, it wasn’t easy… I was not in a great spot in my life, and it was hard to find things to be happy about. But I kept thinking about an old Disney movie my dad had rented for us as kids… Every Friday, my dad would take us to the local movie rental store and let my sister and me pick out one movie each to watch over the weekend. We almost always gravitated toward the Disney section of the kids’ movies, and we came to know and love all of them- even the old classics from the 50’s and 60’s. “Pollyanna” was one of my favorites as a child… I loved the beautiful wardrobe from the time period, and I dreamed of living in a house as grand as Aunt Polly’s one day. However, it was Pollyanna’s “glad game” from the movie that kept repeating in my mind, so I started playing my own glad game and making it a point to find at least 3 things every morning to be glad about, no matter how small.

It could be something as small as the fact that I slept well, or that I happened to wake up that morning. It could be that I was excited to get to have coffee when I got out of bed. Most days, the first thing I thought of was my children and how much joy they bring me. One day I was glad I woke up without back spasms for the first time in a couple of days… Doesn’t getting old suck, y’all?

This morning I woke up and thought of these three things to be grateful for:

• I am so very grateful for the time I got to spend with Sawyer yesterday. His visits are what keep me going right now.
• That I have a place to live. It may not be a big fancy house like Aunt Polly’s, but it’s comfortable and I’m grateful for it.
• That I have so many wonderful people in my life who love and care for me and my family. I can’t express how much your support over the last few weeks has helped me push through; if you know, you know.

Pollyanna was right… There is always something to be glad about, even in our darkest times. It may be silly or trivial to someone else, but if it makes you feel even a little bit happier in your life, then it’s something. We all forget to focus on the good in our lives from time to time; it’s human nature. No one is going to be happy all the time, and that’s ok. But in our hardest moments, we have to remind ourselves that there is always something to be grateful for.

What are you grateful for today?