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Gratitude

colouryourdream purpose goal dream gratitude India Delhi

Today in the morning I thought about my life in general. And once I read a book and made some notes, which I read again this morning. Reading these notes motivate me a lot and I do read them once in a while to remember what is important for me in my personal life.

A few years ago I wrote down some values I have for my life and one is GRATITUDE. Sometimes I am better in it than other days. But I want to remind myself of the good things in my life, and there are a LOT of things in my life, for which I am very grateful for.

More than a year ago I started to write a gratitude journal each evening and I wrote down 5 things I am grateful for this day. And the next morning I read these 5 things again and thanked God for it. It is so good to focus on the good things in our life! I want to start this journal again, cause I did it only a short period of time.

Because of my work I travel a lot and I also fly to India once in a while. There I see a strong contrast of rich and poor. My heart is always very heavy, when I see the conditions many people live in – living in the streets or in a slum.

Once I walked out of the hotel I stayed in and I took my nice summer leather shoes to put a new sole on it. I walked about 5 minutes and there I saw a very old man sitting on the street with a lot of shoes – repairing them. So I thought I ask him. He said I should leave the shoes for a few hours, so that he could repair them. So I  left the shoes there. Later when I told somebody this story, the person shook his head saying: wow, you really left the shoes there? So good you got them back! And only then I realized, that I am a very trusting person, not thinking bad of people. Probably this was the first time ever that he got to repair expensive shoes like mine. He could have sold them or somebody could have stolen them in the streets where he was sitting. But NO!

This nice old man put such a beautiful nice sole on my shoes – even better then the ones before (even than the original italian sole!). I still have these shoes and I always think back on this experience!

When I gave the man the money, he was so grateful. He deserved much more than what he wanted – so I gave him of course more (cause it was not much money for me anyway). He had such a smile on his face when I left. I never forget how he was sitting there in the heat, on the ground with all these shoes – and in the midst of all these shoes, my fancy italian ones.

colouryourdream purpose dream goal gratitude India Delhi

??? What are the things you are grateful for???

31 Replies to “Gratitude”

  2. I used to keep gratitude journals with 5 things a day too. I love this story, like you I am very trusting. In travelling I have often accepted the kindness of strangers and others say I was putting myself in unsafe places, I didn’t feel it – absorbing the new experiences.

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  4. Thank you for this beautiful post … it made me think of Ann Voskamp – http://onethousandgifts.com … if you have not read her book one thousand gifts, you must …
    Thank you for inspiring me to look again at all the wonderful gifts in my life… truly counting them one by one will show us how blessed we are… thankful for your blog, too 🙂

    Reply

  7. A wonderful story Tabea! Your instincts and trust have served you well.
    I was staying with my dad when I read your story of gratitude. Together we watched this. It’s not perfectly related, but at about 5:40 it talks about ‘Reminders’. “… When we think about morality we supervise ourselves to a higher degree (and) are more thoughtful about our own actions.”
    Your blog posts are an inspiring and insightful ‘reminder’. Thank you.
    http://www.abc.net.au/tv/bigideas/stories/2013/02/18/3690297.htm

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  8. I am grateful for everything in my life. This may sound silly, in fact, I know it sounds silly, but I am thankful for my eyes, my kidneys, a car, fresh air, eye lashes, the ability to walk, a job, my children, a husband that loves and treats me well….I could go on and on. Everything, good and bad in my life, I am grateful for. Thank you for a wonderful post!

    Reply

    1. Thank you otimisticgladness =) for your comment. It is so true and not silly at all to be thankful for everything you mentioned! We forget so easily to be grateful for the things we have. Thanks for your encouragement!

      Reply

  9. Great story,
    I really enjoyed reading through this post it is quite humbling and makes one think about ones purpose of life. I think it’s important to be grateful for the small things in life and not be obsessed with the material wealth of todays world.

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  10. Lived 5 years in Mexico. The two pictures here are also places like there in Mexico. But without the cows on the streets.

    I am thankful we have paved walk ways and streets. It is so hard to keep your home clean when the roads are only dust and dirt. I lived on a street in Mexico that was only dirt with an incline to it. When it rained it became a river of mud that stuck to you and took a whole day to clean off the mud from your shoes and pants.

    Though there may be some corruption in the government I live under, USA, at least the living conditions can be favorable and bearable everyday. We have lights and runny water. Other parts of the world do not.

    Thanks for sharing your blog and this post.

    Chef Randall

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  11. This morning I’m grateful that I work only three days each week, and enjoy a lovely four-day weekend. I’m thankful, at this point in my life, to be able to work when I choose.

    I enjoyed your shoe story 🙂

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  12. I, too, keep a gratitude journal, although not as faithfully as you! Whenever something unusual or special occurs, I try to keep track, and have done so since 1983. It’s a wonderful way to record one’s life, focused on the positive influence of God in my life. It’s also a wonderful way to reflect, reading old entries of God-incidences that likely would have been forgotten if not written down.

    P.S. Thank you for visiting my blog. I’m delighted you found “Water and Worship” to be meaningful.

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  16. There’s nothing quite like a trip to a foreign country to make me realize just how much I have to be grateful for. I saw homes like these in Mexico and in Nicaragua…and fellow believers who were grateful for “all” they have with such enthusiasm.

    May the Lord bless and keep you as you travel, and give much fruit for your labor.

    -yours in Christ.

    Reply

  17. I have been reading posts regarding this topic and this post is one of the most interesting and informative one I have read. Thank you for this!
    Even during the toughest times of your life, there is still a myriad of reasons for you to be grateful. Gratitude is a way for one to have contentment in life— appreciating the little things that nurture your life. You may also check my blog Reasons Be Grateful Every Day

    Thanks,

    Cheers
    Doris

    Reply

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