What does gratitude look like?

How should gratitude be expressed in our lives?

For most of us, one of the earliest things we were taught by our parents was to say “Thank you.”

When someone paid you a compliment: “Did you say thank you?”

When someone was giving you a gift: “Remember to say thank you.”

And of course there was always also the right posture in gratitude: “You’ve got to look at her when you say thank you. ”

From those earliest days of learning to say thank you, there have been so many instances when gratitude has made sense to each us – so many times when we have expressed our thankfulness to others.

But as we have grown up – as we have put some distance between our childhood selves and our mature selves – the question of thankfulness has also gotten more complicated. I’m sure we’ll all agree. I’m sure that all of us can think of situations where thankfulness wasn’t at all straightforward. Continue reading →