What if, when you sit around the Thanksgiving table today, or wherever you sit, you take one
Gratitude Minute together in silence, and think about all the things you’re grateful for. Not a
meditation, not a prayer, just let your mind be a movie reel and let all the things you are
grateful for wash over and through you in the silence.
What if you shared one or two of those things that might be more unusual: the sound of the
breathing around the table…. A kid squirming…. The smell of good cooking distracting you….
The cat purring up against your leg… If you’re allergic to cats, the allergy medicine you took
before heading to Aunt Mabel’s house.
What if you texted or emailed a short compliment to someone you had a problematic
relationship with at some point in your life.
What if you wrote, simply, “I’m sorry”, with no “buts” attached to it, to someone you need to
make amends with.
What if you texted or emailed a note of gratitude to a mentor who believed in you and who
changed the direction of your life for the better, and let them know on this day of pause, how
different your life would have been without them.
What if you physically wrote a four sentence thank you note (it will take two minutes) to your
child, your partner, your parent or grandparent, your spouse, or your friend and put it on their
pillow before bed or sealed it and sent it.
What if you told someone closest to you, out loud, “Thank you for being in my life. I love you.”
And just let that hang in the air.
What if you went to a mirror in your house and pointed at the person in it and said, “Hey, you,
good job doing the best you can in life. I love you, too.” (You are allowed to laugh
uncomfortably when you do this).
What if at the end of today, you took a Gratitude Minute all by yourself, with no one else
knowing or being any the wiser, and just sat with it.
What if this all makes you feel totally uncomfortable, but you start with just one of the above,
whichever is easiest for you?
What if you did some these things once a week until it became a habit.
I wonder what it would do inside of you.
Happy Thanksgiving.
Thoughtfully brilliant. Thanks, Neal. A perfect “little” reminder for all us all. I appreciate your work and those of TLC.
Keep up the great work. And enjoy this Thanksgiving.
I wonder what it would do for those to whom I am grateful if I just let them know. Beautiful reflection, Neal. Thank you dor taking the time to share.