“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.

It turns what we have into enough, and more.

It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity.

It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.

Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.”

– Melody Beattie

Throughout the day I try to constantly remind myself to be grateful for ALL I have. Until I read this this morning I don’t think I could have put into words why it was so important: Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. This is so true. Life itself is a gift, the most important gift, and, for that, we should be grateful. Everything else that comes with it is just icing on the cake. In a society that has learned to be materialistic and always want MORE, I think it’s important for all of us to remember that we have ENOUGH and when we are grateful for all we have, this state of contentment will unveil the beauty of life in it all.

I love the way that Melody Beattie words this, it’s perfect. So, today, as with every day, I am grateful. I think my favorite part is, “It can turn…a stranger into a friend.” I tend to try and look at all strangers that way and to remind myself to be grateful to meet someone new that has seen the world differently than I have. There is so much to learn from new “friends.” Calling them strangers closes us off from parts of the world we have never experienced, why not be open to strangers and grateful for the chance to see parts of the world we may never get to see? If you get anything from this I hope that you walk away with the line about gratitude turning strangers into friends. I think it’s so important to be open to others and what they can teach us. Be grateful for those interactions that you couldn’t have if you didn’t have life 🙂 Why must we always yearn for more? If we reflect on the basics of what we do have, I think we can truly see how beautiful life is and how grateful we should be for just that.