I kept a Gratitude Jar last year.
Whenever I thought of something I was grateful for I wrote it on a slip of paper and dropped it in the jar. About midway through the year, I stopped. I don’t know why. I was still grateful for many things during the second half of the year; they just didn’t make it into my jar in written form.
But here are the ones that accumulated over the first six months of 2016.
I was grateful for the small (and not so small) delights and luxuries of life: good coffee in the morning; regular bathroom visits; tasty dark chocolate; professional massages that helped my body feel better; fresh, organic produce and eggs; safe travel to places where I felt restored and re-energized.
I felt grateful for the exercise, beauty, and harvest my garden gave me and the help I received from a few young people with the more physically taxing tasks. I gave thanks for the warmth of sunshine on a wintry day; and finally being able to open the windows and doors again as spring blessed us; delighted to watch a bald eagle glide down the river valley; intensely purple hyacinths.
Beyond grateful, I was “deliriously happy” that my twin grand babies were born healthy and that my daughter recovered well from a challenging pregnancy.
I was grateful for being able to choose what I wanted to do on any given day – a rare kind of freedom after decades of study and hard work.
I was thankful for what money CANNOT buy: love, kindness, friendships that survived the decades, deep satisfaction, beauty, and connectedness to nature.
I was grateful for what money CAN buy: comfort, good food, services, attention, good will, a sense of security, a sense of freedom.
Out of all the paper slips, this one is my favorite: “Grateful for my loving and understanding husband.”
I love that frog sitting among the yellow daffodils – it reminds me of how he tries to make me look at the sunny side of life, especially when I am indulging in negative emotions that I wear sometimes like well-worn clothes. This slip of paper inspired an end-of-year letter to my husband in which I expressed my gratitude for who and what he is in my life.
I suppose it’s time to place that same jar where it calls out to me everyday to transcribe my flashes of gratitude on paper. This really makes me more mindful of the daily goodness I experience and helps me see my glass as half full or, maybe, even totally full by the end of the year?
The Daily Post’s Discover Challenge this week: Transcript.
Wow. I loved this post and the pictures too. The idea of gratitude jar is amazing. This year, I have put happiness jar for myself so that at the end of the year I’d look more towards the positive part than the negative.
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Hello Shreya – thank you for stopping by and leaving your comment. Yes, it is amazing how we can train our mind to see more of what we really want and need. So glad you are starting a happiness jar for yourself.
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My pleasure reading your post. 😊
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Kudos on sticking to your gratitude jar for 6 months. I only lasted a few weeks. 🙂 Your photos and gratitudes are beautiful Annette. I’m grateful for your sharing.
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Writing this post inspired me to do it again this year – hopefully, to the end. 🙂
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Kudos!
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Such a beautiful post. Gratitude is a magic and powerful thing.
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Thank you so much. I agree that as humble as it may seem, reminding ourselves to be grateful has magical ripple effects.
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Hi Annette. At first, when I read about the gratitude jar, I thought “Oh, how cliche. Another ‘prescription’ from some feel-better guru, no doubt.” I am not into blanket prescriptions, as you can tell; I am cynical of one-size-fits-all self-help approaches. But then I read the rest of your post: the actual things you had experienced that brought you joy (and yes, gratitude), the gorgeous pictures that went with them, and your take on all the things life has brought your way. I found myself being grateful, too, for that sunshine on the wintry day and the brilliance of the colors around me. I realized how much I, too, savor that good cup of coffee in the morning. Your post refreshed and re-energized me almost as much as one of those places to which we travel to renew our outlook. Thanks for the beautiful post…one of your best, I think. I am grateful for this breath of fresh air as I get up for work this morning, as it did much to dispel some negativity I was dealing with. Keep writing, Annette. Your sharing often helps more than you realize.
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Hi Donna. I totally relate to your cynical side; there is a part of me that does the same thing. Maybe the part of me that wants more excitement, more adventure? Just like the regular habit of walking a little each day helps keep the joints oiled (I am trying to walk 2 miles/day but am happy when I do it a few times a week). It’s small, not flashy like an aerobics workout at the gym, but I feel energized afterwards.
And with gratitude – heck, there’s so much to grumble about every time I read the news and allow it to filter into my emotional space. If I remember to write that little gratitude slip, it feels like I am creating my own positive news; that’s starting to feel like a revolutionary act in these times….
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I love this idea, Annette! What a great way to remind yourself of all the small and large things we have to be grateful for. The letter of gratitude to your husband sounds like the perfect gift. Thank you for sharing this. 🙂
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Thank you, Cathy. Reading your comment re-inspires me to start up again – today….and my husband loved the letter, so much more meaningful than any physical object I could have given him (unless, of course, it was a brand new motorcycle 🙂
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Annette, this is a marvelous post, filled with beauty and inspiration. I shall hold it close for a while.
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Thank you, Michael. I feel touched by your resonance.
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I do this for myself each year – – and it’s been such a gift to me when I opened it New Year’s eve. Things I thought: “oh I will never forget to be grateful for this. I will never forget this moment.”
I’ve forgotten them 🙂 and they make me smile all over again.
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I’ve had the same experience – thinking that I’ll remember everything – NOT. It is a double gift, then: mindfulness in the moment and memories at year’s end!
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What a beautiful practice! I just may implement a gratitude jar in my life.
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I would highly recommend it…a very simple, yet powerful practice.
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Beautifully written Annette..
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Thank you, Dutch Blue 🙂
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A wonderful post, Annette. It’s a great reminder of how each day can have a special moment, often when we least expect it.
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Yes, and the moments multiply when we open ourselves to this process…
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I love the idea of a gratitude jar. Think I might summon one of my African pots for such service. The photos are glorious as always, Annette. Happy New Year to you.
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I can just see a beautiful African pot as a gentle reminder. I just pulled out last year’s jar (really a vase), cleaned it, and then decorated it in a way that pleases me. Happy New Year to you, too, Tish.
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I’ve already started – a lovely Zambian pot with quartzy glints in the clay 🙂
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Yay – I expect to see a report and picture at the end of the year 🙂
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Thanks for this beautiful reminder, Annette. Congratulations on your twin grandchildren :).
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You are welcome, Bruce.
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This is so great. A gratitude jar is such a fun thing to look back on and remember things!
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Thank you, Jennifer.
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Lovely post and a great idea! I’m starting a Gratitude Jar tomorrow. It might be missing the first days of the year, but I already know what to put in for today. Grateful for learning about the Gratitude Jar from Annette!
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Wonderful, Sheila! Enjoy the process and then the “harvest” at the end of the year…
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Thanks, I will!
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Annette, congratulations on the birth of your twin grand babies! How wonderful!
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Thank you, Debbie, they are getting ready to walk by now 🙂 Here is the post where I announced them to the world: https://beautyalongtheroad.wordpress.com/2016/03/31/little-ones-bring-the-greatest-pleasures/
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Loved readings about all your gratitude… so inspiring and drives us forward into fully enjoying our life… simply… full and motivating. Here’s to a magical new year x barbara x
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Yes, a very simple and yet inspiring practice. Thank you for your comment, Barbara. Wishing you a magnificent year as well 🙂
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That is such a great idea! A Gratitude Jar – maybe that is what I should do for this year:) Thank you so much for the inspiration!
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I hope you will give it a try, Inger!
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The gratitude jar; what a great idea. Thanks for sharing all your treasures.
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Totally my pleasure, Anarette!
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beautiful photographs and a thoughtful practice
wishing you many more blessings for this year
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Thank you, Tree Girl, wishing you and your family a successful year full of blessings.
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A beautiful idea. Every morning I think about all the things I grateful for. But writing them down is so nice. Thank you for sharing 🙂
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I like that daily morning gratitude ritual, what a lovely practice!
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I definately am in the right place 🙂
This is one lovely idea , with a lot of hope and perspective .
We usually aren’t praising the right things at the right moments , and efinitely judging the wrong things at the wrong moments
I thought like that makes your grounded
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Glad this resonated with you so much, Charvi.
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Thanks so much for this I love the idea of a gratitude jar. I just recently discovered your blog but I adore it! I wanted to let you know I’ve nominated you for the Blogger Recognition Award. If you’d like to participate come check out how at: https://wellspringhealthandwellness.com/2017/01/28/blogger-recognition-award/
Thanks for your beautiful posts. Keep up the great blogging!
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Thank you so much for thinking of me. I appreciate the nomination but have decided to keep my blog awards free.
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No worries! Just wanted to let you know I’m loving your blog ❤
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This is such a heartwarming blog!! I loved it! Thank you for sharing.
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Thank you, Debora, so glad you enjoyed my little place in the blogosphere.
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Such a creative idea and a lovely, inspiring post. Thank you for sharing this along with photos of your beautiful handwritten notes.<3
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Thank you for the lovely feedback, Carol.
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I had a gratitude jar last year as well, but didn’t keep going as long as you. Lovely photos 🙂
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Thank you. I started another one this year. Sometimes, I forget about it for a few days, but then I remember again. It’s a lovely practice, sweet and deepening…
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I love this idea and am going to give it a try. I thin it is especially nice to be able to go back and reflect on the moments that inspired your gratitude with a bit of distance. And, your notes are so artful!
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Thank you, Mindful Striver.
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I have never heard of a gratitude jar. What a wonderful idea! ❤
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Thank you, Judie. Maybe you’ll try it yourself?
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You’re welcome! I very well may! Being able to see all of my “gratitudes” adding up sounds like a lovely idea. ❤
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It’s definitely a gift…
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beautiful tiny notes in the pictures… isn’t it lovely to find such notes at places. ❤ it. I do it. It
is so much fun 🙂
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Thank you, Hemangini.
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I currently keep a gratitude list but I love the idea of a jar 🙂
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Either way – it works!
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Stumbled upon this when searching gratitude posts! Wonderful, and really beautiful things to be thankful for. Thanks for the share.
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Thank you for stopping by and letting me know your appreciation.
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