I just got an email from a client who’s in pain on a day devoted to “gratitude.” Here’s what I wrote to her, in case this can be of service to anyone else out there hurting:

“You are under no obligation to say “thank you” when suffering. And yet it can be comforting to say “thank you” for whatever you can–your talent to heal, your ability to think, speak, move, see, etc. But I think it’s cruel to tell someone in pain that they “should” be grateful for anything. Choose what works for you, darling.”

It’s usually after the fact, after we’ve come out the other side, that we can be grateful for the experience. And it’s really the hard parts of life that teach us empathy, and for that I’m grateful.

Warmest regards,
Morgana

One of my favorite tools in the world is my friend Robert Silverstone’s GROW principle. (Go check it out at www.RobertSilverstone.com.) It begins with Gratitude–that’s the “G” in GROW.

In my long list of gratitude, which ALWAYS includes my new home (I LOVE my home, and I’m grateful to have a place to live in a world where so many don’t) and my cat (who’s cuddled up against me right now) and my friends and family, clients, coaches, business, body of work, impact in the world, my Money Honey, and all of the life experiences–fun and horrible–that make me who I am today…

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“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.”
~ Melody Beattie, Author

Gratitude: what a topic for a challenging period! I’ve heard the recession is over, but just try telling that to the people I see sleeping on the streets each day. It seems like most people are scared these days. What is there to be grateful for?

So much! I’m thinking that gratitude is not the same as saying “I’m happy and satisfied with how everything is.” It is the place to start. This is the best time to appreciate what’s working in our lives, so that we are better equipped to take on what is not. Ironically it’s in times of loss that we become most aware of what we actually have.

Few of you know that on November 7, twenty five years ago, I was hit by a car while riding my bicycle to school. I was 16. I was in the hospital for a week, most of that time in a coma.

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