Wednesday, November 16, 2005

Gratitude

I know its corny and expected near Thanksgiving to talk about gratitude but it has been on my mind a lot the last week or so and I wanted to share a few thoughts.
I received a gratitude journal and on the cover is this wonderful quote unfortunately the person that put them together didn't attribute it to anyone. I will share it with you and maybe someone can tell me who it is...
"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend, Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow."
I loved that! I am reminded I have so much to be grateful for, a free country, a loving family, a warm home, awesome friends and pants that are 2 sizes smaller than the last pair I bought.
Thomas S. Monson said "Let us have gratitude for our friends
true friends put up with our idiosyncrasies. They have a profound influence in our lives" I feel like I have some "true" friends and I am grateful for them I hope they know that is the case.
I have a great family they make me crazy but they are wonderful.
I hope during this Thanksgiving we can all remember we have so much to be grateful for and remember to give your sister a hug even if she got away with everything growing up cause she was the youngest and your were the oldest, Give some money to that man standing on the corner even if you are sure it is going to pay for the BMW he has parked around the corner, Be thankful for the fire in your oven from the turkey at least you have an oven, but most of all be grateful and remember to thank your Father in Heaven for all we have.

Gratitude expressed to our Heavenly Father in prayer for what we have brings a calming peace a peace which allows us to not canker our souls for what we don't have. Gratitude brings a peace that helps us overcome the pain of adversity and failure. Gratitude on a daily basis means we express appreciation for what we have now without qualification for what we had in the past or desire in the future. A recognition of and appreciation for our gifts and talents which have been given also allows us to acknowledge the need for help and assistance from the gifts and talents possessed by others
Robert D. Hales

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Love this entry, Carin. Great thoughts - and that quote is a fantastic one!

Congrats on the smaller pants, too! :)

April said...

Great entry Carin. Not corny at all. There's a lot of truth in there - things worth saying.

I must say I'm jealous of the smaller pants. I feel like I'm the only person I know who isn't rapidly shrinking. You go girl!

Anonymous said...

I am grateful to have such a smart, talented and fun daughter! I am pleased beyond expression to see you starting to spread your wings and find YOU.