Lesson From a Glass on Gratitude

As our calendars have turned the page to November, the season of Thanksgiving is here. That inevitably brings thoughts of gratitude for most of us, even if 2020 has been working overtime to make that challenging. Yet, finding our path to gratitude has never been more important.

No matter what this year has meant for us that seems hard, we cannot allow ourselves to lose sight of all the gifts that have also been a part of the changes in our lives. Good is always present. Even when we are destined to find it in new ways.

I’ve come to think of it like the sun. It’s always present, always doing its job. Even on the dreariest, rainiest day with clouds at every turn, the sun is still in its house shining down, waiting patiently for the clouds to lift, even working to make sure that they do. That’s the good. The sun.

When we focus on what we have instead of what has become challenging we put our creative juices to work. One of my favorite insights on this comes from Kade James: “Focus on circumstances and you’ll be a consumer. Focus on capacity and you’ll be a creator.”

That’s where the glass lesson comes into the conversation. That lesson is where that most important question was born for me before 2020 even arrived: What does this make possible?

We talk about our glass as being half full or half empty as the way to tell if we have a positive or negative perspective. Do we see what we have? Or what we lack? This is where a positive mindset is largely misunderstood. It isn’t that everything is good. It is that everything holds the possibility of good.

That may sound like so subtle a difference that it couldn’t possibly matter but in fact, it is all that matters. When we can see possibilities, gratitude is never hard to find.

There have been times in my life when my glass was full to over-flowing. There were other times when it did indeed feel empty. But most of my life has been in that in-between state of half-full and half-ready for whatever is next. That has helped me understand that regardless of where we are, it’s not going to stay the same. That is something to be grateful for because of the possibilities that come with every change.

If your glass has room in it, be thankful for it. Look forward to what is coming your way. My great-grandmother Molly Mackenzie would remind us of the Cherokee prayer to be thankful for "unknown blessings on their way".

And if, like me, for this present season, your glass is full to over-flowing, be grateful for having the ability to share those blessings with others. When we do, we bless them as we create room in our own glass for more.