Last month we started a series on helping our youth focus on preparing for the next stage of their lives – in the midst of an on-going pandemic and particularly stressful period in the world. The first concept was affirmations. This month, we’re looking at gratitude.
We didn’t come into this world all by ourselves and we don’t move through it alone. We are not independently self-sufficient self-sustaining beings. Everything we do and everything we have has some connection to others. Two easy examples: what you’re reading right now and transportation. Someone else built your computer, phone or other device, created the wireless network you’re connected to, and built whatever vehicle you use to travel. Even when you walk, you’re wearing shoes that someone else made. You get the picture? We are interdependently connected to others to give and receive, which is reciprocity. In his historical novel, Two Thousand Seasons, Ghanaian author Ayi Kwei Armah calls it "The Way."
We didn’t come into this world all by ourselves and we don’t move through it alone. We are not independently self-sufficient self-sustaining beings. Everything we do and everything we have has some connection to others. Two easy examples: what you’re reading right now and transportation. Someone else built your computer, phone or other device, created the wireless network you’re connected to, and built whatever vehicle you use to travel. Even when you walk, you’re wearing shoes that someone else made. You get the picture? We are interdependently connected to others to give and receive, which is reciprocity. In his historical novel, Two Thousand Seasons, Ghanaian author Ayi Kwei Armah calls it "The Way."
This month we’re moving from recognizing and acknowledging our strengths and gifts through affirmations to recognizing and acknowledging the strengths and gifts of those around us. How do we acknowledge that inter-connectedness, that interdependence? How do we show respect for what we have been given? How do we show reciprocity, one of the seven virtues of Maât?
One way is to give thanks for and to those who are connected to us in some way. The connections are physical, emotional, and spiritual. You may be giving thanks to those around you, to the Creator, to your ancestors. You may be giving thanks for the objects they create, for the experiences they provide, for the opportunities to learn and grow, for the joy they give us, for supporting and loving us, and for just being within our circle. |
As children we’re taught to “Say ‘thank you’” when receiving a gift, a favor, a compliment. Sometimes we may also reciprocate with something similar. That’s one way to show gratitude. Buying Black is another way – we all have to support our communities and each other as we work to create, build and sustain ourselves. In our newsletter we have links to some of the hundreds of Black businesses in metro Atlanta.
Acknowledgement of gratitude can also, ironically, be just you speaking or writing it to yourself. My neighbor always says, “Today is a gift, that’s why it’s called the present.” In the morning, give thanks for the day. You can say or reflect on words of gratitude, and then an affirmation. You can write about it in a gratitude journal. |
In the evening, you can do the same, giving thanks for the experiences of the day, reflecting on what you accomplished, what you learned, how you felt. You’ll be surprised at the impact that this practice has. You will more easily be able to be in the midst of drama and trauma, and still move forward with focus and strength.
For more information:
Gratitude is Good Medicine! How Being Grateful Can Heal:
blackdoctor.org/practice-gratitude-its-a-heart-healer/
Gratitude for the ancestral warriors - from Mwalimu Baruti:
Gratitude
A brief overview of the brain science behind the physical and emotional impact of gratitude: kwiklearning.com/kwik-tips/the-effects-of-gratitude-on-the-human-brain/
Gratitude is Good Medicine! How Being Grateful Can Heal:
blackdoctor.org/practice-gratitude-its-a-heart-healer/
Gratitude for the ancestral warriors - from Mwalimu Baruti:
Gratitude
A brief overview of the brain science behind the physical and emotional impact of gratitude: kwiklearning.com/kwik-tips/the-effects-of-gratitude-on-the-human-brain/