#73 of 100 Simple Suggestions... Be grateful

A friend of mine used to talk a lot about how we can't create our own happiness, force someone to be our friend, or make a flower grow. Yet we are happy, we have friends, and there are flowers. My friend helped me to realize that there is no such thing as a self-made person. We don't run our lives the way we like to think we do. The fact that the universe, our world and we exist at all is a cosmic gift beyond our limited understanding.

So even though I've said it before, I'll say it again: No matter our belief system, being grateful is necessary because it keeps us from taking everything for granted. Appreciation keeps us down-to-earth and helps us to value the enough that we already have. And hopefully, that means that we leave enough for our brothers and sisters who aren't so fortunate as we.

So today I'm grateful to be here at home, recuperating from a head cold, even though I'd rather be at the Clothing Room as I usually am on a Thursday, chatting with my mom, sorting clothes, and kibbitzing with the homeless friends who visit. But it's only a head cold, and for that, I'm grateful. There's always next week.

For what are you grateful today?

P.S. Looking for more Simple Suggestions? Try here.