A Joyous Perspective on Gratitude: It's the light in the tunnels of life

It's Friday, and time for another Friday Night Thought Tale Hour with the Henderson's. Earlier this month, I saw a meme from one of my friends sort of making fun of how people would begin to post every day about what they were grateful for. A couple of people laughed and made sarcastic remarks.  The gist of the commentary somehow seemed as though you were simple-minded and boorish if you choose to do this during the month leading up to Thanksgiving.  As I thought about it later, I considered how they needed to be allowed this little laugh, because more than likely...

They have not walked through the valleys of life in the darkness.

They probably haven't found themselves so terribly lost, sad, and emotionally distraught that they couldn't find their way.  Unless you have been in that place like I have, you might find being grateful for the floor beneath your feet, or the roof above your head, or the sunlight through your window as being completely unremarkable. But when you have been at the depths of despair, you will understand that having the ability to pull up a list of what you are grateful for that still exists in your life can mean the difference between getting out of bed or staying in it.

Gratitude becomes the flashlight you keep in your back pocket for when the lights go out in life.

So I encourage you, before you make fun of those gratitude daily statements on your newsfeed, consider making a list of a few of your own.  Life may have been pretty good so far, and you may have been able to pull yourself up and move forward with some obstacles. But there's nothing wrong with being prepared, is there? Or, you just might need to give a friend something to hold on to in their dark night of the soul.

So this next Thursday, have something to say about gratitude in your life.

And keep it close, even if you choose to keep it private for the year ahead.

Cheers.