How Do You Practice Gratitude? For Toronto: One Small Habit That Helps

I wake up happy most days because that’s just my natural set point, and it once earned me the nickname Little Miss Sunshine.

Thankfulness is a different thing from a sunny mood, though. Even for me, it takes practice.

One small habit has helped. When someone I love is having a rough day, I tell them one thing I’m thankful for, ideally something to do with them. It doesn’t need to be a speech.

Something like, “I’m so glad we got fifteen minutes together tonight.” The bad news from the mechanic is still real, and the kids still ran amok.

Saying it out loud doesn’t erase the hard part of the day, and it isn’t meant to. It just points at the part that went right, so it doesn’t get buried under everything else.

I’ve come to think of thankfulness the way you’d think about learning another language. You aren’t fluent in the first week. You practice and get it wrong, and then you practice again.

It helps a lot to have someone to practice with, because some days you’ll be the one who needs reminding.

Some days that’s me, and on those days my pity parties are allowed to last about as long as a hot bath or a cup of coffee, and then I go looking for the fifteen minutes.

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This is a thought from Mel’s Turn. Read more of Mel’s Turn in #dealwithit: Duct Tape for the Soul.

This is for personal reflection, not medical or crisis advice.