Eucharisteo

Last summer me and a few friends started reading One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp.  I absolutely loved this book.  In writing this book Voskamp wanted to share how she experienced a life of gratitude in the midst of everyday life.  She posed the question, "What does a life of gratitude look like when your days are gritty, long, and sometimes dark? What is God providing here and now?"  Its so easy to focus on the bad when your days are filled with deadlines, whiny children, bills, martial spats, a messy house, car troubles...the list goes on and on.  And its so easy to forget all of the little blessings that make life so full and wonderful.

 Voskamp started a list of all the things she is thankful for (her goal was to reach one-thousand,) and in doing so she discovered a life she always wanted, a life of deep and lasting happiness.  While reading this book I decided I wanted to start my own journal, and so I began to list things I'm thankful for, with the same goal of reaching one-thousand.  In the beginning I was very diligent.  Whenever I saw or remembered something that made me smile, I would quickly jot it down in my journal. Here are a few examples.  No judgement okay?

2. Watching my children discover new things
13.  God's continuous forgiveness
33. A box of new crayons
36.  Washing the floors and wiping down counters (its weird I know)
44.  A letter from a friend
58.  The joy of finally catching a fish after a long day at the lake
73. Hearing Samantha read for the first time
142. Calculators, because I'm horrible at math
192.  Honest friendships - the ones where I can be candid, transparent and not feel judged.

    Over time though I let the hustle and bustle of a busy life over take me, and I forgot all about my journal.  It wasn't until just recently while I was purging all closets, shelves, cupboards (basically my entire house) that I came across my blue and white journal.  I flipped through the pages and read my notes of thanksgiving, my eucharisteo. For those of you unfamiliar with this word, it means to be grateful, give thanks, be thankful.  I forgot how good it felt to remember all these little blessings and happy memories.  So I sat down once again and begin to list off item after item that I was thankful for.  After about 20 minutes, I felt refreshed and at peace.  A wave of contentment and bliss seemed to wash over me.  Since then I have promised myself to make it a weekly habit.

 No matter how rough the day or week I make the effort to find things I am thankful for.  Some days its easy, other days I have to stretch my mind and think outside the box and look beyond today and into tomorrow.  It has done my soul so much good!  I have a deeper sense of happiness, less prone to snap at my children and husband, and I'm able to put things into perspective.  Things that used to bother me, don't have the same effect on me.  These are just some of the benefits I've seen since I started my journal.  Of course its not the perfect solution.  I still have moments of ingratitude and find myself wishing for things I don't have.  Hey, I am human after all.  I just want to challenge everyone who is reading this, to start a similar list.  I promise you'll see amazing results, and its fun too.  I'll leave you with a few more notes of thanksgiving, to hopefully inspire you and get your brain thinking along the lines of eucharisteo.

56.  A full glass of wine
69.  God's gift of creativity
86.  The sound of crickets in the summer time
92.  Giving a gift that you've put a lot of thought into
99.  Snuggling William after he wakes up from a nap
154.  Witnessing an elderly couple hold hands
248.  Samantha's moral character, she even corrects me when I'm wrong
267.  The smell of cilantro