Thanksgiving is the original gratitude holiday. But how’s about the other 364 days a year? They too are gratitude-worthy, but without the mashed potatoes it seems harder to ante up the gratitude, I guess.

There are a lot of studies that confirm what my experience has been saying since this blog was born–which is that gratitude can make you happier and less depressed. Maybe if people could get this in a prescription bottle at CVS, along with a reciept that takes 10 years to come out of the cash register, they’d pay attention?

I don’t need clinical data to know that when I am grateful for something I have, I feel better, than when I’m whining about something I don’t have. Not only do I feel better about noticing something in my midst, it helps to keep me in the moment. There’s so much talk about being in the moment that sounds so woo woo silly to me and completely unobtainable. So much of the time I am thinking about what I have to do next, or what I did that is impacting what I have to do next. But when I feel gratitude about something, I am in the actual moment of the actual day that is happening. It pulls me into the now. That’s a side benefit. Even if it’s just for 10 minutes. I’ll take it.

 

 

And gratitude doesn’t have to be fancy, you know. It can be anything you are happy about. I mean, it can be a great movie, the fact that you’re having a good hair day, the sale at Bloomingdale’s. I’m an equal opportunity gratitudeathoner. It’s the act, the focus on something good that gives us the feels. It’s the fact that you are noticing the positive and not the negative.

 

 

So, since you’re thinking about gratitude because we’re in turkey week, this year, why not consider extending the practice and making it an everyday thing? See what happens. I’m guessing you will be pleasantly, mashed potatoedly surprised.