A Poem of Gratitude

“Any day I’m vertical is a good day” …. And that’s what I always say.

And I give thanks for my health

If you ask me “How are You?”… I’ll answer, “Great” because in saying so, I make it so.

And I give thanks I can choose my attitude.

When life gives me dark clouds and rain, I appreciate the moisture that brings a soft curl to hair.

When life gives me sunshine, I gratefully turn my face up to feel its warmth on my cheeks.

When life brings fog, I hug my sweater around me and give thanks for the cool shroud of mystery that makes the familiar seem different and intriguing

When life brings snow, I dash outside to catch the first flakes on my tongue, relishing the icy miracle that is snowflake.

Life’s events and experiences are like the weather- they come and go, no matter what my preference.

So what?! I might as well decide to enjoy them.

For indeed there IS a time for every purpose under heaven, each season brings its own unique blessings…

And I give thanks.

This is one of the poems that concluded the Senior Retreat.  With the theme, “An Attitude of Gratitude,” the class of 2016 spent the day working on expressing gratitude for all the things we have been blessed with over the past four years.  During this time, we participated in many activities including a period of silence, letters of gratitude to people in our lives, meditation, and an amazing lunch.  The concluding prayer service that wrapped up our retreat focused on how we can take all that we learned on retreat and incorporate it into our everyday lives.  As a class, we put together a collection of post-it notes of all of the things that we are grateful for that will be displayed at baccalaureate.  From our families, to teachers, to blaza swim, our class had a lot to be grateful for!

We truly had an amazing day of reflection and sisterhood. We remember that life is pretty awesome when we remember to be thankful.  As Mrs. Carlson said, “If you want to find happiness, you must find gratitude.”