Wow! Week 26…we’re halfway through the year. That was quick!
One of the purported benefits of expressing gratitude is the ability to better cope with stress. My own experience keeping this gratitude journal over the past six months bears this out. Regardless of the aggravations that I’ve been dealing with, stopping once a week to reflect on the abundant blessings in my life helps put things in perspective. It’s easy to become overrun by the stresses that we all encounter in our daily lives, and I haven’t come across a better prescription to counteract a negative outlook than the gratitude habit.
Here’s what’s on my gratitude list this week:
>> A perfect graduation weekend, surrounded by family, honoring our graduate and his amazing friends.
>> Very grateful to have been granted the strength and tenacity to advocate for one of my son’s educational needs. The process for getting appropriate accommodations can get contentious and stressful, and I’m very grateful that our school district came to see things our way this week without our having to take more formal measures.
>> The brotherly bond my youngest son, Matt, has with his camp buddies. This is their fifth summer together at sleep-away camp, and seeing the Handsome Hellions reunite each time is a genuine pleasure. They will be tight for a lifetime.
>> Being able to exhale for a while at our beach house. It’s been a whirlwind few months, and I feel blessed each and every time we get to unwind and spend time in East Hampton. We savor the beauty of the farms and beaches, the easy lifestyle, the luscious just-picked produce and our time together—and we never forget how fortunate we are to be able to get away to a place that makes us so happy and relaxed.
>> The beautiful fragrance of honeysuckle. The sweet smell of summertime.
What are you grateful for this week?