Gratitude

If you asked my mother, I am a very ungrateful person. She believes this can come easily from being unhappy, but she finds it hard to tell the difference between the two when it comes to me. I think I have been bred from a hard learned truth that life has been really bad when its bad, but also really good when it's good. I seem to miss those middle of the ground periods. I try to be positive; or atleast I am now. A new year's resolution of mine is to take the little things in life, remember them, hold on to them, and let them bring me joy even in the darkest of days. 2 years ago, a student of mine gave me a Christmas present. At the time, I scoffed at it, thinking this was simply a re-gift from his mother and was honestly somewhat annoyed. This child made my day to day, well, not so awesome; and the mother wasn't so swift either. Sometimes these types of parents realize what they put us teachers through, and on occasion have really stepped it up and sucked up at Christmas time. This present, however, almost annoyed me more. The Simple Abundance Journal of Gratitude. This was a hardback book, with quotes of gratitude randomly throughout a calendar of sorts. It's a diary I guess, where you write a few words, a sentence at most, about what you were grateful for that day. At the time I threw it on a shelf and hadn't looked at it again until just a few days ago... and it hit me. This is my new year's resolution. How dare I take a gift from a student and not cherish it with my whole heart. How dare I take a gift from a mother who may realize she does not know me and does not have the first clue what to do for me (or her child). But instead of looking at the negatives like that, I was happy. Happy I waited to use this book 2 years later for I believe I need this book now more than ever. In his own writing, whether coerced by his mother or not, a young boy wrote to me: "Ms. T, Thank you for being a wonderful teacher. Thank you for everything. Sterling". He may have made my first year in Kindergarten damn tough, but he's doing amazing in 2nd grade, he has grown into a very handsome young successful student. And you're damn right I take some credit.

So I figured I would every now and then, update and let you know what I've entered into my GB (grateful book). I think the whole point, or as I interpret it as, is you don't need to write a book to explain what you're thankful for. I may forget the specific things I reference from day to day, but the idea of it will remain. I may not remember what movie made me laugh, which child gave me an unexpected hug, but I'll know it made me happy.

The opening quote is:

"If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is thank you, it will be enough."
~ Meister Eckhart

Jan 1: Being with friends to start the new year
Jan 2: A roaring fire and a good movie
Jan 3: The Goat
Jan 4: A job
Jan 5: Kindergarten hugs, even when you don' "need" them
Jan 6: Sense of humor - mine and other's