The prompt for August 1 was to write about eleven people, past and present, for which you were grateful. People that you were grateful for but who also made a significant impact on your life. To share not only who they were but why you were grateful for them and to be specific in the details of what made you feel gratitude towards them. As a couple of ‘bonus’ activities it was suggested we think about people we may have had to forgive or what they had to teach us in that gratitude. Further to that, it was suggested we reach out to a few of the people on our list and express our gratitude to them.

I found this a might bit difficult. Not because I am not grateful for people but because I really wanted to be thoughtful and curate a record that reflected those who had an impact on my life. People who shaped and changed who I am. My “list” is not in any order, just as they came to me.

1. My son – he was an easy choice. He is here for bringing me light. Teaching me the world is new and that all of life’s lessons are brand new. That each moment is finite and never repeats. And because he has shown me how to love in a way I never knew.
2. Mrs. L – my grade four teacher. She was sometimes mean, sometimes kind. She taught me to crochet, never judged, and to lead with love. When others couldn’t reach through my blocks, she kept trying. She persisted with me when I struggled with math and never gave up.
3. My Gramma – my sweet, sweet Gramma. I would not be who I am without her. She taught me so many things, to love, laugh, live, care, bake buns. She inspired me to learn to crochet with fine threads. Gramma taught me to be strong no matter what, how to face adversity and be strong, how to keep going when you just don’t think you can go any more.
4. My sister – the one who can do anything with nothing! She knows 101 things to make with hamburger, can budget shop like nobody’s business, and has a strength and resiliency just like our Gramma. She says she has no emotions, but I think she is just better at hiding them then most. I admire her in so many ways; a few sentences aren’t enough.
5. My husband – I’ve written about him before but what I am grateful for his what he’s given me in this life. Himself. He was 39 when we met. A confirmed bachelor. He gave all that up for me. A shared life. Home, pets, marriage, a child. For me. I am and will always be grateful that he chose to share his life with me. I was his choice.
6. My niece – she is a force. I am grateful for her readiness to always help with I need her. She is strong, confident, and knows what she wants. She takes life, chokes it, and marches forward, ready, able, and out to kick butt. Life isn’t easy but she just knocks it around and owns it. I admire that.
7. My professor from college, S – smart as a whip, confident, a smidge older, but wicked successful, she was always someone I aspired to be life. Kind, witty, charming, and a force of knowledge, she was a leader in her profession. She went through the program I was in, finished, went to a fancy architecture school, slayed that, worked in the field, then came back to teach! She worked more and was able to retire early.
8. My former mother-in-law – why? Because she taught me how to let go. How to forgive, and how to realize that sometimes, no matter how good you try to be, how kind you are, some people just will never (ever) see the good in you. And? I forgive her for that. Her issue was never really with me. Her issue was with her son.
9. Our Cat – Crescent – I am grateful for that sweet little girl. For the peace she brought my son. For the light she brought to my world. For the late night snuggles (she really does curl up in my arms like a baby, I often fall asleep with her curled up in my arms). The smiles she brings to my face, the games of fetch, the meowing for snacks, the jumping into my arms, the stealing of lettuce, Brussel sprouts, and bacon from my plate.
10. My best friend, Chris – I am grateful for him for many reasons but simply, sometimes it is because he knows me better than I know myself. He knows my moods by looking at me, knows when I’m down, regardless of how I try to hide it, and he seems to know how to pick me and make me smile. He believes in me when I don’t and supports me in all my endeavors.
11. My great nephew – that kid started out having it hard. Thankfully, he has spent the past six years surrounded by the biggest love ever. He is silly and joyous, a little weird (my brother, his grandfather & guardian is a little weird, so it checks out), but is a bright light in a dark day. My sister-in-law is doing a fantastic job with him and Little B is growing into an amazing young man. His laugh is infectious, his spirit – unbroken, and he is the kind of person that makes you want to be better.

Unsure what I am talking about? You can catch the intro post here, but in short… The wellness studio I go to is running a free workshop this week, Elevate & Illuminate: A Free Lion’s Gate Portal Offering. Trista, the owner, is presenting live everyday, a gratitude challenge or assignment where we are tasked to come up with 11 things on a set idea or prompt. So after the eleven days, we will have eighty-eight things or moments of gratitude.