Introduction

From a young age, most of us are taught to say thank you for the good things that happen to us. This matters, as it engenders good will, kindness, and social cohesion. It also plants the seeds of reciprocity and joy. This is where living gratefully begins: noticing and appreciating all that life offers, including the opportunity to be here at all. That we can breathe, drink water, feel the sun on our skin, enjoy the company of people and animals — the list is limitless. And yet it’s easy to take for granted what may be readily available. Living gratefully begins with developing a mindset and practice that takes nothing for granted.

While gratitude in response to the blessings of life is a great place to begin, it’s dependent upon favorable external circumstances. But life, we know, doesn’t always unfold with ease. We’re confronted with loss, heartache, and even simply the challenges of daily life — all of which can make moment-to-moment gratitude unrealistic and certainly unsustainable. Simply put: while we may sometimes forget, it’s not so hard to feel gratitude when things are going well; it’s tough, though, when things are falling apart or your heart is breaking.

Living gratefully offers a deeper, more unconditional, and robust experience of gratitude, one that is not dependent on the immediate conditions of your life. It is a stance toward life — a response — that can guide and support you in times of joy and sorrow, ease and adversity. It avoids both the oversimplification of positive thinking and the denial of life’s complexities. With consistent practice, it empowers you to approach your life with a grateful perspective, no matter what happens. 

Let’s pause here for a moment to clarify. Does this mean that somehow you’re supposed to be grateful for everything? That you’re supposed to feel fine because surely someone else has it worse? That it’s just about finding the silver lining? Absolutely not. As our founder Br. David Steindl-Rast makes clear: We cannot be grateful for everything, but we can be grateful in each moment for the opportunity that is available to us. He writes, “Times that challenge us physically, emotionally, and spiritually may make it almost impossible for us to feel grateful. Yet, we can decide to live gratefully, courageously open to life in all its fullness.”

If that sounds compelling, challenging, wonderful, or difficult — you’re right! It is all of those things and one more: possible. Through reflection, conversation, and practice, you can access this enhanced perspective and meaningful pathway through life. This enlightened approach awakens you to the opportunity present in each moment, helping you discover profound meaning in an ordinary day. Living gratefully is a revolutionary way of being — one that ultimately allows you to feel fully alive in each moment, present to what is, and more comfortable in the uncertainty that surrounds our future. In short, living gratefully is a way of living each day with greater capacity for presence, awareness, meaning-making, and action.

• What feels compelling or liberating in thinking about living gratefully as a way of life, not simply a response to the good things? What feels challenging?