Cultivating Gratitude in Everyday Moments 

Gratitude and Thanksgiving 

As the celebration of Thanksgiving draws near, it seems natural that the virtue of gratitude would be our focus. In a certain sense, it’s easy to express gratitude for the larger blessings in our life—and even those people we don’t see on a regular basis. Thanksgiving brings to our table a mixture of family and friends, as well as a mixture of emotions. It is here where this virtue is tested and purified. I can’t really predict what this will look like or sound like for you, but I can offer a perspective which has renewed this virtue for me.  

Gratitude in the Ordinary Moments 

Pope Benedict XVI wrote in his 2012 catechesis on Ephesians 1, “God’s love is so real.” These words, “God’s love is so real,” have been present with me as I have walked each day looking around for this view. To intentionally see the events of daily life through this lens provides a fresh and free response to daily events. To intentionally seek an inner attitude of seeing God’s love in the ordinary events of life, stirs gratitude. Praising and thanking God for a sunset, a kind word from a friend, a thoughtful cashier, a large colorful red leaf on the ground—the truth of God’s love is so real that it is manifested in abundance when we intentionally try to see what is happening around us. 

Living with a Grateful Heart 

As Thanksgiving draws near, I encourage you to see the daily occurrences of the manifestation of God’s love—a love, which is so real and yet can be hidden because of the selfishness of our own view. Ask Jesus to show you the Father, who knows the number of hairs on your head and when a sparrow falls. May you end each day with a heart full of gratitude, a smile on your face, and these words on your lips: “God’s love is so real.”