The Peace Projectনমুনা

Day Two: Thankfulness: A Nice Place to Start

Soul30 is the phrase coined when my husband, kids, and friends decided to practice thankfulness, kindness, and mercy together for thirty consecutive days. My friends even agreed to meet once a week to share our findings and to see if peace would show up, linger and last. (Spoiler alert: We got more than we bargained for.)

When signing everyone on for Soul30, I never imagined that calling out a thing for which to be grateful would trip anyone up. So much so, I even added a stipulation to my makeshift guidelines that every day warranted a new thing for which to be thankful—no repeats. Gratitude seems so easy, painless, and potentially boring since becoming a cultural buzzword the last few years.

The idea that ticking off things for which you are thankful can change your mood seems dubious and too good to be true. But science proves it not only to be true but also good for your heart. Still, you are not alone if you are feeling doubtful, all of us did—but we also experienced something that always followed doubt, and that was amazement. It seems we first must get to the willingness part of practicing thankfulness, which can sometimes be the hardest part.

That first step involves letting go of whatever has our mind trapped in stubborn ingratitude. If we can’t, then we probably need to dutifully take steps away from being focused on ourselves by ticking off specific things for which to be thankful, whether we believe it will work or not.

Another key discovery was accessing mercy. That felt really hard. But mercy, even the tiniest bit of mercy in a given moment, did what it seems to do; it invited freedom. Mercy given and received.

But for mercy to ignite, it must be invited into the conversation and accessed, literally activated by calling it into the process with genuine hearts willing to be humble and ready to receive. Because whether we are having mercy upon someone else or upon ourselves, we always experience freedom. Another thing for which to be thankful.

Interestingly enough, gratitude isn’t just an easy place to start or simply a passenger along for the ride; it’s guiding our drive. Thankfulness primes the pump for kindness and mercy to flow.

How have you practiced thankfulness, kindness, or mercy today? What did you learn?