Gratitude Glasses

Cancer has a way of handing you a pair of gratitude glasses, the kind that make you look at people and things as if you're seeing them for the very first time. A long look into Steve's or my boys' eyes is something I find myself doing a lot more often - there's a gift there I don't want to miss. Sitting in church today I saw, so much more easily than I did eight weeks ago, the presence of love in each of us - and it's healing power to bring us all together back home the truth of who we really are.  Engaging with Steve in the "What do we have to be grateful for?" conversation has been a lifesaver in this adventure. We've unearthed lots of blessings that have made it onto the growing list - like we're grateful we found out now not later, we're grateful this isn't happening to one of our kids, we're grateful for all the challenges this one isn't, and always we're grateful to have each other to go through it with. Just this morning we took on our family Thanksgiving tradition of writing what we're grateful for all over the window; my personal favorite (compliments of Cam) - "when Cole wakes up and finally turns off his alarm."  I've uncovered a whole new level of gratitude since hearing the old Gratitude Journal idea with a twist - at the end of your daily list, add one or two things you're grateful for that haven't happened yet. 'Gratitude encourages receptivity' is the gist, and enables us to manifest what we are seeking with more ease. I've played around with this enough to know there's great power in it, but my favorite gift from this new awareness is the way it's transformed just about everything I say to God. Instead of endless versions of "please help me with...", it's turned into "thank you for soothing my digestive tract, thank you for helping each of my boys relax into trusting you more, thank you for inspiring me to know who and what can best help me, thank you for giving Steve extra energy to do so many extra things, thank you for reminding me all day long that I am protected by divine love and what I need is taken care of." Can't you just feel the difference? It moves us out of feeling like a beggar and into a space of openness and trust, ready to receive packages of light that are already on their way. God's love is more tangible when I pray this way, and it feels like I've moved from dial-up to high-speed (as The Piano Guys would put it). This new pair of glasses is at the top of my gratitude list this Thanksgiving, right after the ever-present love I feel from all of you.