Marinate in Gratitude

Gratitude is such an important part of daily life! Everyday I write in my gratitude book that I call my, Moments in a Day book where I record a couple things in my day that were filled with goodness. Today I wanted to simply spend a little extra time in gratitude. It’s an important practice for me to write these things down because life gets tough and things can change so quickly sometimes for the worst and it’s so instrumental in maintaining hope and light in such darkness through practicing gratitude. For me writing it down is such a tangible way to see the goodness of God and the blessings even when things are difficult! Since my gratitude book is only meant to fit a few things, I want to take this opportunity to write it out in a much more developed sense that takes more time and thought therefore allowing me to essentially marinate in gratitude! Literally just now came up with that concept! See? This is why I love writing! It brings out so much imagery and profoundness and creative goodness! So Anywayssssss! (Read that in a Nacho libre voice because that’s how I’m saying it in my head lol) Some of these things will be deep below the surface and some of these things will be a bit more lighthearted but they are all so valued and equally worthy of gratitude! I will ask include pics at the bottom of some of the things I talk about in the following. So! Here is my list : (in no specific order)

• Health: I think health is such an important thing that I definitely take for granted until I’m not heathy anymore. Whether it’s mental, emotional, physical, spiritual health or otherwise I often don’t take stock of what a gift it is to be healthy in those areas until there’s an area (often more than one) that’s no longer healthy. So today I recognize that gift and sit in intentional gratitude for the healthy of myself and my loved ones.

• Prayer: How special is it that I know the Lords love for me and that I can talk to Him all the time, at any time and know I am not alone, know I am fully seen, heard, known, and loved beyond measure, beyond limitation, and even beyond my understanding! Thank you Jesus! 🙏🏾

• Friendship: I cannot even fully express just how grateful I am to be blessed with the incredible friends I get to be surrounded by! Whether it’s old friends who have walked alongside me for years, friends who needed to take a back seat in cessation parts of my journey but who were always there for me, or new friends who are just scratching the surface of what I hope to be a true and deep connection. For all my friends I am grateful to you and for you and I consider our friendships to be so sacred and special.

• Food: I know all ya’ll feel this one too! Food is just so yum! And it nourishes my body, and my soul on so many levels! Food brings people together and food brings people joy! Yes I am snacking while writing this and yes it’s delicious 😋 next!

• Delivery services: this one may seem a little random but oh my goodness I don’t know what I would do without online stores and delivery services! If you are a foreigner living in China reading this, you know exactly what I’m talking about! For everyone else, allow me to explain 😂 there are a lot of things I can’t get where I live in China because it’s a smaller more traditional Chinese city which is beautiful and lovely, however it mean there are plenty of things Im accustomed to having that I can’t get here! Take face wash for example, all the face wash here has bleach in it because having very pale skin is a standard of beauty here but I have sensitive, acne prone skin and those products only worsen my skin situation! Period toiletries is another example. They only have light pads here and only one store sells small tampons for super expensive. Neither of those things work for me and would cause such misery for me during that time! Another thing is clothing. A lot of the clothing here doesn’t fit my body type because it’s different from the genetic body types of the Chinese so I have the hardest time finding clothes that stretch and fit my lady bits without making me feel like I’m wearing a potato sack! Some of these things may seem a little superficial at first glance but honestly if you know, you know. I am incredibly grateful for the postal system that allows me access to this like this that help me live a better quality life.

• Bills : for the first time in years I am no longer paying bills in two countries!! I cannot tell you what a relief that is for me to be debt free! If you’ve ever experienced it, you know what I’m talking about. Instead of sending money home every month while also paying my bills here and now having a lower paying job than the one I previously had, it means, when I do send money home it can actually stay there an accumulate over time building up my savings account and allow for a little more financial stability and comfortability.

• Nature: being an Oregonian at heart yet living in a Chinese city is not an easy thing! I’ve always seen Oregon for how beautiful it is but I definitely took it for granted and didn’t take advantage of soaking up all that beauty as much as I would’ve liked too. Living here has given me such eyes of love and gratitude towards the beautiful place that is still home to me in so many ways. I love living here and I love that living here has given me such appreciation for where I came from. That being said, there are also so many beautiful naturey places here as well that I can now enjoy more consciously! Yesterday I literally went out to buy a couple plants because my gratitude for nature overflowed and allowed me to take action and invite more mature into my life therefore more beauty and gratitude. 🪴

• Languages: honestly being a language teacher in a country where you don’t speak the native language is not easy. Sometimes I find myself thinking “if everyone spoke the same language, life would be so much easier!” But first of all, if that was the case I would be out of a job! 😂 And second I am in constant awe of the beauty, complexity, and variety of languages in this world and I wouldn’t change that for anything! I am incredibly grateful for language and the fact that we can use it in so many different ways to express ourselves! Language is not just the spoken or the written word! It’s the way our body tells stories from our eyes to our posture, art of all forms are languages of their own that communicate so much, the language of love that needs no words at all! I could go on for days but I’ll spare you 😂 I just see it in such a stunning light and want to share that with you! 🙏🏾

• The Internet : I know often times people see a lot of the bad side of the internet with cyber bullying, pirating, abuse in many forms and so on but for me it’s is filled with so much goodness! Living so far away from home, the internet is the ONE thing that constantly keeps me in contact with the people I love and for that I will forever be in such a debt of gratitude to the internet! It also serves as such a vessel of information and wisdom! I have access to the news of the word at the touch of me finger, I have access to self education simply by googling what I want to learn about! There are amazing apps that teach you languages without having to pay am absurd amount of money you don’t have! It allows me access to resources like therapy, physical wellness, sermons from my church, amazing music from all over the world and sooooo much more. The internet blows my mind in the best ways possible on a daily basis! It’s all about your perspective and what you specifically use it for.

• Books: similar to what I said about the internet, books also allow me to reach knowledge and wisdom that otherwise would’ve been so far out of my reach! Reading allows me to see from a million different perspectives and gives such insight into the human experience. From memoirs to fun children’s stories, the written word always has been and always will be one of the most profound practices in my daily life. I’m especially grateful for my e-book specifically because as a traveler I can’t be carrying around a zillion books with me! My ebook allows me access to such a vast library right at the touch of my finger from anywhere in the word and it’s small enough to fit into my thigh bag and weighs practically NOTHING! Shook at modern technology and how it’s able to incorporate something as old as time like the written word and put it into my pocket! There is something to be said about physical books for sure but as a person who’s moved 4 times in the last 2.5 years having my nook (Barnes&Noble ebook) has made every difference in keeping my mind alive with imagination and knowledge!

I could name a thousand things that I am grateful for because there is so much goodness in this life but I will leave it at that for now. I definitely plan on continuing this practice as a series of posts that I do periodically so stay tuned for that! Now that you’ve read all about some of the things I’m grateful for I would love to hear the things that you are practicing gratitude over! Feel free to message me or comment on this post. I’ve always believed that listening to the gratitude stories of others has always shifted my heart posture to a more focused path of gratitude and that is so special! Don’t forget to fill in your email and subscribe so that you will get my posts straight in you in box for easier and updated access to my blog! That’s all for now saints.

Stay spicy, stay wild, be kind, and practice gratitude. ♥️