Gratitude During Hardship Accentuates the Positive

Take Pen to Paper: Edition 114

Nov 28, 2024

Happy Thanksgiving, Friends!

I am most complimented on how consistent I am with my gratitude habit. The compliment is usually followed by, “I wish I could do that.”

When I hear that, I can tell those people don’t understand the power of writing gratitude.

In this newsletter:

There are habits.
Then there are habits.
What kind of a habit is gratitude?

Being a Creature of Habit

I know I am a creature of habit. Are you?

My day is filled with habits and routines (made up of the habits I put more intention into), from my morning routine to where I park at the grocery store (I’m always disappointed when someone else has parked in “my spot”).

Many of our habits are unintentional. We may not realize we’ve created them until something comes along to change things, like having to wake up early to travel or park in a different parking space.

These are habits that we can change and live with the results, even though we hope to return to them at the next opportunity.

The Habits We Can’t Leave Behind

We also have habits we cultivate intentionally. These habits are often part of a routine.

Until my thirties, I was a haphazard user of dental floss. I have only had one favorite dentist (thank you, childhood dental trauma). Everything about him said, “My patients come first. I’m really good at what I do and work for perfection.” He told me if the choice was between brushing or flossing, he would choose flossing. I became a flosser and a brusher. I can’t brush without flossing first. On nights when I’m really tired, I’ve tried. I can’t do it.

I’m the same way with my daily walks. Something feels wrong if I don’t get in a walk. I intentionally plan my day around when I can walk.

Where Does Gratitude Fall in the Habit Spectrum?

When I tell someone how I keep a daily gratitude journal and their response is, “I wish I could do that,” I think, “How can I not do it?”

Gratitude is a habit I depend on to put a positive spin on my day regardless of what kind of day it is. It makes that big of a difference to me.

That’s one cute snout to snuggle with. Photo by S.G.S. Abel

As I sit here writing, my dog, Arlo, is resting beside me recovering from back surgery. Things happen that we don’t control. They are not always good. Suddenly our house revolves around his recovery. He has his movement restricted while recuperating. Keeping him crated is one answer, but the couch is one of his happy places. (The hardship of an injured pet can’t compared to many that others experience.)

Practicing gratitude will not take the negative away, but it will accentuate the positive. I can lean into that. I am grateful for friends and family who have expressed their concern and checked on him. I am grateful for the veterinary care he’s received and that we can afford it. It’s a difficult time for us, but it shows me what I have to be grateful for.

Gratitude is a habit anyone can make routine if they put intention behind it. If you want gratitude and its many benefits in your life, you need to practice it. You can become the person you practice to be.

7 Days, 7 Thoughts on Gratitude and Good:

I am grateful that Arlo shows improvement every day. The picture above shows him back at one of his other happy places, in front of the heat vent.
The Humane Society is a source for finding affordable pet care. 🐶😺
It is a good thing to practice the gratitude you celebrate at Thanksgiving throughout the year. 🗓️
With all your hardships, you have many things to be grateful for. Think of the people in early photography. Don’t you have more to smile about than they did? This article explains why they might not be smiling. 😁
I’m a big fan of creator Austin Kleon. You may enjoy his latest newsletter on what he is grateful for. 📜
It’s Thanksgiving. Here’s an interesting article on turkeys. 🦃
Are you shopping for a child for the holidays this year? This article on how children have too many toys might help you decide what to get. 🧸

Thank you for reading. This season of thanks, think about hardships you have experienced and the gratitude it accentuated. Happy Thanksgiving!

Until next time,

💚

Susan

What habits have you cultivated intentionally into a routine? Leave a comment and let me know. I would love to read about it.

🙏Bonus thru November🙏

Last year, I created a free gratitude template for anyone interested in either:

starting a daily gratitude practice
stretching your gratitude practice

The template is 31 topics and example sentences for gratitude. Thirty-one topics will get you through each day in any month. Isn’t November a great time to start?

My journaling habit started with gratitude. It has brought me more than I imagined, so it’s natural for me to recommend it.

I love having a guide and examples when I take on a new endeavor. I hope this template provides that for anyone who wants to use it. There are three ways to access the template.

Access and make a copy of this Google Document: The Daily Gratitude Habit Jumpstart
Go to The Daily Gratitude Jumpstart by clicking this link https://sgsabel.gumroad.com/l/DailyGratitudeHabitJumpstart. Or enter it into your browser.
When you scroll down the page, you should see my Gumroad home page without the “Name a fair Price” section circled. In the “Name a fair price” box, put the numeral “0” because this is free! You provide your email, and a copy will be sent to you to download.

You can also access Gumroad through my website, takepentopaper.com, which has a link to the site described above.

Let me know if you have any problems by commenting or answering this email. Technology and I are often at odds, and I may need to tweak access.

I will post the above in my newsletter throughout November. Remember, the template is not month-specific. Use it any time.

Take Pen to Paper