I scattered wildflower seeds behind my house and was surprised when a wildflower prairie did not zoom up out of the ground like the picture on the seed package. “Nonsense,” my mother had said, “you need to put in some plants.”
And so that spring on her birthday, i stopped at the nursery after dropping my daughter off at school. i stood in the chilly morning air, filling a tray with both well thought out and spontaneous purchases. After warming up in the house with a second cup of coffee, i trundled back out into the cloudy day to plant.
My neighbor, Neyah, walked by just then, and said, “With weather like this it is a good time to plant, and they will do well.” I appreciated his blessing.
To bless is to wish well. We all have the power to bless. Blessing transcends religion and spirituality. We all may enjoy giving and receiving well wishes.
A blessing, as a noun, is something which we are grateful for in our lives. When we begin to count our blessings, we find we have much to be thankful for. Counting our blessings is an exercise in gratitude, and gratitude promotes happiness.
Counting my blessings is a part of my personal practice. There have been times when I do this before falling asleep at night, or as currently, during my morning meditation. My daughter, my son, my husband, my clients, this roof over our heads.... and over time, curious and often overlooked or taken for granted things; my legs, my hands, the functioning of my body, the sweet smell of rain through an open window, the time and freedom to write..... flush toilets... toilet paper even.
We pause for blessing at our dinner table. A simple and often times silent, “thank you to this fish, these beans and rice and tomatoes and avocado and lettuce and olives. Thank you for this water, and beer. Thank you to the fishermen and farmers, truck drivers and grocery clerks, and the hands that worked to buy this food and cook this food. And the hands which will eat this food. May it nourish us well.”
At times, our minds may see a situation as a curse rather than a blessing. This point of reference usually makes us feel miserable. It is always possible to take a different point of view, turning things upside down or inside out, facing them in the opposite direction or from an eagle eye perspective. Flip it on it’s head, and spin it around.
I remember a time that I was at a party. A mom cried to me that her daughter was still living with her. She was in college and living at home. At that same party, another mom rejoiced to me that her daughter was still living with her. She was in college and living at home.
My neighbor, Cynthia, walked by and saw our new Prius parked behind our house. She marveled and instantly placed her two hands on the roof. “May all have safe and happy travels here.”
I am humbled by the vastness of all I have to be thankful for. I feel such an overwhelming sense of gratitude. We are all so blessed.
May your days and nights be filled with a 1000 blessings.