Something I started doing a good 15 years ago. I’m 70 now. At the end of the day I have a cup of tea. I used to just drink it on auto pilot… surface living… not thinking. Now… I have a “cup of gratitude” each night. First sip straight up ‘thank you for this day … all of it’. Each sip I silently give thanks for another part of my day that I experienced. Last sip ‘thank you for tomorrow. For helping me make a difference’. (Even if that difference is simply making a cashier smile on a rough day). It has a calming affect and I sleep better.
This is a beautiful practice. And thank you for this article. It resonates. At 61 I’m coming out of a deep sadness that came over me when turning 60. I’m very healthy, have my adult children nearby, a good career winding down, a nice little home. Yet the realization I have more yesterdays than tomorrows and that so much life has happened—with too many hardships and struggles and poor choices—just shadows everything it seems. I don’t want my remaining years to be the same. And when that’s all you’ve known, it’s hard to see a gentler path lies ahead.
Tricia I was in your shoes. I had lived my dreams. Created the store I had always wanted to. Yet my personal life was filled with sorrow and pain. The first night I had that cup of gratitude I realized that I felt less ‘empty’. Within a month’s time I started remembering what hope felt like. And then one night I flat out realized that my past didn’t matter anymore. It was what I did with my ‘now’ that was going to make all the difference in my life.
My Grandma used to tell me to count my blessings each night when I was a kid. Some nights it felt like there just weren’t any. Those were the nights she told me to start counting with myself because without being grateful for who we are nothing else is possible. She was right.
Thank you for your kind reply. Lots of losses the past few years — all my sons married and starting families yet turning to wives and their families for everything now. DILs icing me out of grandchildren raising — TikTok and YouTube and Insta have all the answers. All of that really stings. But just the overall vibe that we become invisible and not needed after accruing a lifetime of wisdom. I’m just at loss about why some younger folks do this. Lost 4 jobs in 5 years due to ageism and supervisors 1/2 my age. It’s just a hard time. Thanks again.
Unfortunately a chronic medical disease and the current political actions of this administration have stolen my joy. This seems to be written for middle class people who don’t have money problems or serious health issues
You can always find something to complain about. The flip side is you can always find something to be thankful for. You get to choose what you focus on! That power to choose is a great blessing that many people ignore!
Something I started doing a good 15 years ago. I’m 70 now. At the end of the day I have a cup of tea. I used to just drink it on auto pilot… surface living… not thinking. Now… I have a “cup of gratitude” each night. First sip straight up ‘thank you for this day … all of it’. Each sip I silently give thanks for another part of my day that I experienced. Last sip ‘thank you for tomorrow. For helping me make a difference’. (Even if that difference is simply making a cashier smile on a rough day). It has a calming affect and I sleep better.
This is a beautiful practice. And thank you for this article. It resonates. At 61 I’m coming out of a deep sadness that came over me when turning 60. I’m very healthy, have my adult children nearby, a good career winding down, a nice little home. Yet the realization I have more yesterdays than tomorrows and that so much life has happened—with too many hardships and struggles and poor choices—just shadows everything it seems. I don’t want my remaining years to be the same. And when that’s all you’ve known, it’s hard to see a gentler path lies ahead.
Tricia I was in your shoes. I had lived my dreams. Created the store I had always wanted to. Yet my personal life was filled with sorrow and pain. The first night I had that cup of gratitude I realized that I felt less ‘empty’. Within a month’s time I started remembering what hope felt like. And then one night I flat out realized that my past didn’t matter anymore. It was what I did with my ‘now’ that was going to make all the difference in my life.
My Grandma used to tell me to count my blessings each night when I was a kid. Some nights it felt like there just weren’t any. Those were the nights she told me to start counting with myself because without being grateful for who we are nothing else is possible. She was right.
You are a blessing. Start there.
Thank you for your kind reply. Lots of losses the past few years — all my sons married and starting families yet turning to wives and their families for everything now. DILs icing me out of grandchildren raising — TikTok and YouTube and Insta have all the answers. All of that really stings. But just the overall vibe that we become invisible and not needed after accruing a lifetime of wisdom. I’m just at loss about why some younger folks do this. Lost 4 jobs in 5 years due to ageism and supervisors 1/2 my age. It’s just a hard time. Thanks again.
Hang in there. What they don’t seem to need - someone else just might.
Great suggestions!
Thank you so much! ❤️
I really needed to hear this today!
The most fulfilling way to live.
Very good I wish more of the seniors in this high-rise I live in would take some action towards a better life. They seem destined to just wait.
Unfortunately a chronic medical disease and the current political actions of this administration have stolen my joy. This seems to be written for middle class people who don’t have money problems or serious health issues
You can always find something to complain about. The flip side is you can always find something to be thankful for. You get to choose what you focus on! That power to choose is a great blessing that many people ignore!