Reflect

Eighty-five days ago on the first day of this challenge, you were invited to envision the world anew — to imagine a more connected, joyful, and meaningful way we humans could be living. Since then, you’ve reflected and practiced, whether consistently or imperfectly, all with the goal of living gratefully as a response to the fractured world. In his wildly popular TED Talk, Br. David Steindl-Rast reminds us that how we each live individually can have a powerful impact on how we live together. He says, “[Living gratefully] can change our world in immensely important ways, because if you’re grateful, you’re not fearful, and if you’re not fearful, you’re not violent. If you’re grateful, you act out of a sense of enough and not of a sense of scarcity, and you are willing to share. If you are grateful, you are enjoying the differences between people, and you are respectful to everybody, and that changes this power pyramid under which we live.”

There’s a path here to liberation, yours individually and ours collectively. Living gratefully wakes us up to the joy and possibility that have been given to us, not only when everything’s going well but — just as importantly — when things are falling apart. Through practice, we’re liberated to experience awe, connect deeply with others, discover meaning, and cherish the everyday wonder of being alive.

The practices now through day 90 are reminders of the liberation that can come from living gratefully. At day 91, we’ll begin a 10-day countdown to the finish line…and to Br. David Steindl-Rast’s 100th birthday celebration!