Gratitude
I came across this lovely poem by Barbara Crooker, was touched and reminded of all the many things that I am grateful for. I give thanks for this poem of gratitude.
Gratitude
This week, the news of the world is bleak, another war
grinding on, and all these friends down with cancer,
or worse, a little something long term that they won’t die of
for twenty or thirty miserable years—
And here I live in a house of weathered brick, where a man
with silver hair still thinks I’m beautiful. How many times
have I forgotten to give thanks? The late day sun shines
through the pink wisteria with its green and white leaves
as if it were stained glass, there’s an old cherry tree
that one lucky Sunday bloomed with a rainbow:
cardinals, orioles, goldfinches, blue jays, indigo buntings,
and my garden has tiny lettuces just coming up,
so perfect they could make you cry: Green Towers,
Red Sails, Oak Leaf. For this is May, and the whole world
sings, gleams, as if it were basted in butter, and the air’s
sweet enough to send a diabetic into shock—
And at least today, all the parts of my body are working,
the sky’s clear as a china bowl, leaves murmur their leafy chatter,
finches percolate along. I’m doodling around this page,
know sorrow’s somewhere beyond the horizon, but still, I’m riffing
on the warm air, the wingbeats of my lungs that can take this all in,
flush the heart’s red peony, then send it back without effort or thought.
And the trees breathe in what we exhale, clap their green hands
in gratitude, bend to the sky.
to do. Just taking the time now to sense our breath and again and again. What happens? Great article: 
Right Relationship doesn’t begin with the relationship, or even with the other person with whom we want to have that relationship; it begins with us. Are we awake to where we are and what is going on around us? Are we aware of our attitudes and feelings, and the deeper values, hopes and fears that give rise to them? The foundational skill for developing and maintaining right relationship is self-awareness. Self-awareness in basic terms means being in the moment to what we’re feeling and what’s important to us.
We all need to care for ourselves in an accepting, compassionate way. Self-care is a life style and not dependent on a product or service that we can buy. Advertisers may try to convince us otherwise. Taking time to pause and listen to the wisdom of our bodies helps to discern what we need which is independent from what the many ads vying for our attention want us to buy.
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