Gratitude

In the past, I was never one to make a gratitude journal. I’m weird and always tried to start one when I was in a funk or very depressed. It’s hard to write what you do have when you are in a mood that makes you reflect on what others don’t have.  You think, “Sure. I have that but it means that this other person in a less fortunate situation doesn’t. I’m spoiled.” This is not the right way to start a gratitude journal. (Obviously. As I have learned, the hard way.) So I was skeptical that it even works. I have been in a funk lately, what with the weather and my busy life sapping my energy, and was not in a head space to feel grateful about anything. But the fog finally lifted the other day and I did a journal entry on what I was grateful for. And you know what? When I read it back, I smile and feel my heart glow all over again, no matter how dark my mood is when I start reading. (It’s especially helpful after reading the news happening in the USA).

Here are my top 3 at this exact moment.

1.  My family and their sensitive and empathetic nature.

   

   

   
   

   We are a family of empathetic introverts. This means we are tuned in to each other’s moods, which can be good or bad but is mostly good. Our family seems to know, intuitively, whether the other person needs a hug or alone time. It means we are largely more patient with each other and easy to forgive. I think it also makes our kids game-changers as far as the future goes. They will be the ones inventing environmentally-friendly solutions to everyday problems or out saving animals or forests since they spend a lot of time thinking of the future of our world and the people in it.

2. We own our house. 
   This is the view of the sunset from our house. No filter was needed and we had no tall building obstructing the view! I am so happy to be owning our townhouse. This is a huge bucket list item for me. We never owned our house growing up and rented a couple of drafty houses. As an adult, I was constantly moving and had a new address every 6 months to a year. When I met Josh, we ended up renting a main floor together and moving in to a townhouse when Isabella turned two years old, which we ended up living in until this year- so 7 years! Living in that last townhouse for 7 years gave us a sense of stability, sort of, because we weren’t moving every couple of years, but we didn’t feel happy. That place was a cave because of the layout and there was no natural sunlight. If you left your curtains open, the street and people around you were so noisy that you felt assaulted by the outside world, so the curtains would be quickly closed again….which made it even more of a dark cave. Even though our landlord was very nice and very quick to fix most problems, big fixes were ignored or done on our dime. Getting to know our neighbours was challenging – most of our neighbours were constantly changing. The ones that did stay were noisy partiers with a lot of personal problems that had me calling the cops on more than one occasion.  They meant well, I think, but they stayed with a lot of baggage attached to their presence. Now, we own! As an owner, we feel a sense of pride, have great neighbours and live on a quiet street. The townhouse we live in now gets a ton of sunlight! That alone makes me the happiest person. And the place is smaller so I spend a lot less time cleaning and WAY less time shopping to “fill the space” or “make it homey” since I already feel comfortable and at home here, without extra stuff hanging around. Sometimes it hits me that I own a townhouse and I find myself smiling from ear-to-ear. Bucket list item checked off!
3. Kali’s purrsThis one may sound a bit weird to you until I explain. Before we moved, we had our other cat, Thorin. Thorin had us dealing with a bunch of behavioural issues from him. I looked it up and consulted officials and the general consensus was that Thorin was fighting for dominance over Kali. The only way to know for sure was to get him a new home where he would be the only cat. I was sad and terrified. What if I gave him away and we found out it was Kali that was the problem? What if we got him a new home and the behaviour continued there, so that the other person hated us? What if we got him a new home and it was terrible for him? So many thoughts and concerns were swirling around my brain. I lost sleep. I lost sanity. By some miracle, we found an EXTREMELY nice lady that was the perfect home for him. He would be the only cat, she has a lot of time to cuddle him and he would have a fourth floor balcony to play on without the interference of other cats or their smells. So off Thorin went to his other home. And then we held our breath. Would he continue to misbehave and be sent back? Would it turn out to be Kali that was the problem all along? We didn’t have to hold our breath for long. Thorin was great in his new home and Kali seems a lot happier being the only cat. There has been no inappropriate peeing or scratching and she has been using the litter box properly. She is more talkative now- to the point where it gets a little annoying- but overall she is a much better cat to be around. Her purrs are my favourite part. When I work from home, she is there purring beside me. So I am grateful beyond words that the whole situation worked out fine and that everyone, furry or human, is happier.

This is only three items off of a list of two pages. I listed the non-materialistic ones, but there was also things on there that were items, like my perfect pink couch that we got for a steal from ReStore. But I felt that these on the list were more long-lasting and will remain my top 3 forever.

What are you grateful for?

Do you keep a gratitude jar or journal?

Does this gratitude list idea seem woo-woo or practical to you?   

Would you like to keep reading? Here are some posts that might interest you….

Rescue a Feline Life This Christmas.

Almost Two Months Since We Moved.

Five of the Easiest Ways To Get a Handle On Your Finances.