Reframing Gratitude

Happy Thanksgiving

Let’s talk about gratitude.

Tis the season.

Gratitude journaling has been one of the few practices that hasn’t changed much for me post faith transition.

Well I guess two things have changed: 1. Now I view my gratitude practices as more of a morally-neutral choice rather than an obligation. and 2. the direction I point my gratitude has changed.

I wrote the following piece on reclaiming gratitude for Thanksgiving 2021 on my Instagram.

I’d like to pull it out from its sleepy spot to give it a little more time in the sun. Especially since I just recently wrote about writing letters to LOVE and this poem references that practice.

Tell me about your relationship to gratitude- has it changed in recent years?

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Reclaiming Gratitude

My second year of college
I started a gratitude journal

because God I guess
(but really because Oprah told me to)

Five things I'm thankful for
in my little notebook
while eating Honey Nut Cheerios
every morning
before prayer
so I could remember the things to thank God for.

I counted my blessings.
I named them one by one
all through college, mission, marriage, kids.

All those years five thankful things to God.

But then I burned God.

And out of the ashes arose Big LOVE.

I kept my five little written gratitudes,
but now in a letter to LOVE.

"Thank you LOVE 
for my neighbor's pine tree,
for the mist hanging over the bluff this morning,
for Hugo's baby-toothed smile,
for a warm shower on my back."

And she surprised me
when she interrupted my thanking her mid-thank....
"What are you thanking ME for?"
she asked
"I don't require your gratitude--
Go thank the thing itself."

(in the beginning she frequently had to remind me
she is not a fussy toddler
in need of my devotion, praise or consistency)

I scratched out "thank you LOVE for"
and replaced it with
"thank you pine tree, thank you mist,
thank you Hugo smile, thank you warm shower."

And now 
instead of directing all my love and appreciation
towards just one being--
I find I much prefer sprinkling it all over my world.

Thank you world.

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If you’ve gone through a faith transition, is gratitude different for you now?