Joyful Witness / Kimberly Pohovey

Practicing gratitude leads to many positive benefits for us and others

I’ve always considered myself a grateful person. My parents instilled in me the politeness of always saying “thank you” so much that it is ingrained in my daily life. I try to go out of my way to express my appreciation for my family, friends and co-workers. And, when I remember, I thank God for little things that go right in my day.

I get quite a few video devotions in my daily e-mail. Last week, I watched one that talked about living with gratitude. It got me thinking: am I simply “polite”? Or do I live a life of gratitude?

With Thanksgiving nearly upon us, I thought it worthwhile to take a closer look at gratitude. An article titled “The Science of Gratitude” on the Mindful website provided a whole host of benefits from living a life of gratitude:

• It boosts immunity and heart health;
• It increases the social connections you make with others and helps you develop more meaningful relationships;
• It calms anxiety and can relieve depression;
• It leads to greater feelings of happiness and joy in your life; and
• It helps you develop a closer relationship with God.

In short, practicing gratitude makes everything better.

The article also details many ideas for how to improve gratitude in your daily life, like journaling for what you are grateful, writing a note of thanks on a consistent basis to someone in your life, or verbally expressing one thing for which you are grateful during family prayers in the evening.

But the one idea that really struck me, although it is simplistic, is to take time to notice what’s around you. It theorizes that the more you are in tune with the world around you, the more you will find reasons to be grateful.

When I think back throughout my life, I have had several encounters with people who expressed how much a thank you note from me meant to them. In particular, I remember early in my career I worked in alumni relations at a university planning many events.

After each event, I made sure to send a handwritten thank-you note to every volunteer. It took a lot of my time, but I knew how much it would be appreciated.

A man probably in his 30s volunteered for one of our service events. It was the first one he had ever attended and felt uneasy because he didn’t know anyone at the event. I sent him my usual thank you note afterward. While it was a very small gesture on my part, he called to let me know that note meant the world to him. He said he felt valued and needed for the first time in many years. And he vowed to volunteer more in the future. We never know what affect our kindness might have on someone.

When we thank others, we probably do not give enough thought to what message we are sending. For some, it validates the work they perform. For others, it makes them feel needed. Still others may feel “seen.”

Being mindful of how others perceive our appreciation helps us to be more intentional in thanking them. I find that I experience great joy when someone seems affected by my gratitude for them. And in every case, that recognition of my gratitude makes me in turn more grateful to God for inspiring me to say something to them.

Beginning this Thanksgiving season, I plan to be more cognizant of two things: to dialogue with God on a daily basis, sharing with him all of the things for which I am grateful; and, to go out of my way to express my thanks to others—not just with a simple, verbal “thank you,” but through written notes or small gifts or other gestures that require more time and thought on my part. The Letter to the Hebrews tells us, “Therefore, we who are receiving the unshakable kingdom should have gratitude, with which we should offer worship pleasing to God in reverence and awe” (Heb 12:28).

How are you living a life of gratitude?
 

(Kimberly Pohovey is a member of St. Jude Parish in Indianapolis. She is the director of major and planned gifts for the archdiocese.) †