Be grateful… they say. There is always so much to be thankful for, so many blessings

Have you ever struggled with having an attitude of gratitude? If yes, then thank you for being honest. So have I. There is nothing wrong with struggling to be grateful when you feel sad, mad, hurt, lonely, bored, etc. Let those feelings vibrate through your body, and DO NOT feel guilty for feeling negative. When you are ready, consider the good that very well might have been there all along. 

And, if it helps you, write a thank you note. Enjoy my very own. 

Dear 2020,

You came in as a year full of promise and excitement. I had intentions for my 40th year of life and for my kids’ senior, junior, and sophomore years of high school. You did not honor my expectations. At times I have struggled to accept this. 

COVID related shutdowns piled us under scary financial burdens and for the first time ever there was nothing Jamie could do to grow business. We joined the world in stress and fear and didn’t leave our home for weeks. We grew unsure and didn’t know how to handle the daily uncertainty. The kids struggled with understanding how to navigate isolation and boredom.

We cared about and served others. But it was hard to shake the daily, in our face, perspective  that our world was the hardest, the scariest. But, we were reminded by the news and over social media of the real struggles people who were not born into privilege have been facing. 

The world was shaken. Division erupted globally, statewide, and even in our own community. 

It is not how we want things to be, but it is how they are. We will keep fighting on our foundation of growing toward understanding. We will show up in strength. We can fight and grieve at the same time as accepting and shifting our perspective away from blame and anger and move toward gratitude and love. 

Thank you, 2020 for the opportunities to learn. For the chance to show our resilience. To show our love for humanity. 

Thank you for my habit of training and my desire to take care of my body. Thank you for the opportunities to race virtually with the team and on my own. Thank you for realization that my husband is an amazing training partner. 

Thank you for the gift of more time with Jamie. 

Thank you for the rare opportunity to truly and fully know my three teenagers. It is not always easy, but it will be a gift in life to have had extra, uninterrupted time with them. 

Thank you for family dinners and for the opportunities to read about and discuss social justice and political topics. Thank you for teaching me more about patience and forgiveness. 

Thank you for many chances to navigate hard things and negative feelings together. Thank you for the chance to teach my kids about honoring all of their feelings and knowing when it is time to accept and adapt. Thank you for the many opportunities to learn how to fully feel. 

Thank you for the reminder that we need to take care of ourselves well in order to care for others. Thank you for the nudging to not stay inward focused and the abilities to continue to serve others in our community. 

Thank you for opening doors to learn to be more understanding and gracious to others. 

Thank you for so many new and resurrected previously enjoyed activities and opportunities for our family: mountain biking, disc golfing, reading, golfing, puzzle doing, game playing, dancing, cooking, weight lifting, walking. 

Thank you for our team, our friends, our family, and our community. It has become more evident than ever that it truly takes a village

Thank you for a simple introduction to Zoom and other platforms to make virtual connecting easy. Thank you for the reconnection of the amazing community from The Zone through cycling and bootcamp. 

Thank you for giving me a moment to breathe in my otherwise hectic schedule. Thank you for prompting me to take this moment to write, so I can honor my soul and hopefully reach the souls of others. 

Thank you for essential workers who keep us safe and serve our needs. Thank you to all who made it safely possible or Jamie and I to take my postponed birthday trip to Antigua. Thank you or the consistent, ever present beauty of creation all around us. 

Thank you for our health and for the health and safety of our family. May we never take it for granted. 

I haven’t always liked the circumstances of this year, and I sometimes struggle to find gratitude in the moments. But, I refuse to not acknowledge the blessings, as there are truly too many to count. 

Thank you.

With love,

MB

Do you want some more practical advice on shifting your perspective toward being more grateful? Check out my article coming soon on the Training Peaks athletes’ blog. https://www.trainingpeaks.com/blog/