SOL19 Slice #6 My gratitude practice

I am participating in the
 Slice of Life Story Challenge (SOL19)
All participants are writing about one moment, one part of their day, every day for the month of March 2019.

A big thank you to Two Writing Teachers for providing this unique opportunity
for teacher-writers to share and reflect.

These have been turbulent months for me...the birth of my granddaughter, the death of my mother, the continued decline/poor health of my father, frequent travel to support him, moving him out of his home, on and on. Something that has been very precious for me throughout this upheaval has been my gratitude practice. For almost three years, I have been part of a gratitude circle, thanks to a dear friend who heard about these through her church and decided to start one herself. I am connected with six women 'virtually' - only one of whom I have met in person - and we email lists of ten gratitudes to one another as frequently as possible (ideally daily, certainly weekly). I find myself looking for small moments of joy throughout my day. It has truly become a practice.

Here's today's list:

1. The way my four month old granddaughter locks eyes with me.

2. How my husband wakes up talking, sharing his dreams with me.

3. We have a field trip to the National Building Museum today and my preschoolers are so excited.

4. The brisk air as I walk outside.

5. My Fitbit says I moved 11 out of 11 hours yesterday.

6. A text from my brother, reaching out.

7. My dear friends have been married 15 years! Oh, the fun we had at their wedding!

8. My son - a teacher, too - received immediate and positive feedback from his principal's observation of him yesterday.

9. The purple flower on my African violet on my windowsill, in the early morning light.

10. This quilt I am sitting under, as I write.

Something that really surprises me is how I look forward to reading the gratitudes of everyone else in the circle. Although I hardly knew most of these women when I started, I am now entrenched in their lives, thinking about the beauty and joy of their worlds. Tough things are shared, too - and you stretch yourself to look at these from a positive perspective. You get to know one another in such an uplifting way. My gratitude circle helps me find the goodness in my life, to see possibility in new ways. 

Yes, my gratitude practice is a true blessing - I am grateful for the practice! Ha!

What are you grateful for?