Day 73

The Moment

The moment when, after many years
of hard work and a long voyage
you stand in the center of your room,
house, half-acre, square mile, island, country,
knowing at last how you got there,
and say, I own this,

is the same moment when the trees unloose
their soft arms from around you,
the birds take back their language,
the cliffs fissure and collapse,
the air moves back from you like a wave
and you can't breathe.

No, they whisper. You own nothing.
You were a visitor, time after time
climbing the hill, planting the flag, proclaiming.
We never belonged to you.
You never found us.
It was always the other way round. 

-- Margaret Atwood 

I wanted to share this poem with you today. I stumbled upon it in my research on grateful living, in a few different places actually. I found it to be a reminder, a stern reminder even. A reminder that none of this is ours. Everything we have can be taken away in an instant. That sounds terrifying, of course, but I don't mean it in a gloom and doom sort a way. Its just a simple truth. So let us be grateful for the gifts we've been given. Every waking moment. Express your gratitude to the earth, the universe, to God, to each other. Live each day with gratitude in your heart for each and every blessing you have in that moment.

Day 73: I am grateful for all the beauty, nourishment, and joy the earth provides. I am grateful for each and every organ and drop of blood in my body. I am grateful for the kindness of friends and the love of family. I am grateful for all the blessings that come to me everyday. My cup runneth over.