{"id":782,"date":"2011-11-24T21:08:30","date_gmt":"2011-11-25T04:08:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jerrysjuicebar.com\/blog\/?p=782"},"modified":"2013-01-07T00:03:50","modified_gmt":"2013-01-07T05:03:50","slug":"gratitude-and-the-spirit-of-thanksgiving","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jerrysjuicebar.com\/blog\/?p=782","title":{"rendered":"Gratitude and the Spirit of Thanksgiving"},"content":{"rendered":"\"\"<\/a>\n

When I was a boy growing up there was a hymn that I learned in church. \u00a0The song was about counting blessings. \u00a0There was a simplicity in both the melody and the words and the refrain went like this:<\/p>\n

“Count your many blessings name them one by one.<\/em>
\nCount your many blessings see what God has done.<\/em>
\nCount your blessings. \u00a0Name them one by one.<\/em>
\nCount your many blessing see what God has done.”<\/em><\/p>\n

The beat slowed when you sang the part “name … them … one … by … one” as if to emphasize that the exercise of naming and listing was as important as the list itself.<\/p>\n

This to me this – naming blessings one by one – is the lost concept of gratitude.<\/p>\n

It goes beyond the art of being thankful in a general way. \u00a0Everyone can do that. \u00a0Thankfulness has become more of a courtesy than a sincere expression of appreciation.<\/p>\n

Thanks! \u00a0Thanks alot! \u00a0Thank y0u! \u00a0Thank you soooo much!<\/p>\n

Yeah, whatever.<\/p>\n

Today is Thanksgiving Day. \u00a0We focus on what we’re thankful for. \u00a0So I started counting those things I am thankful for. \u00a0I started counting my blessings. \u00a0Whoa! \u00a0It was a long list. \u00a0And as I turned the page on the list I sensed that I hadn’t even scratch the surface. \u00a0There was so much to be thankful for … so many blessings. \u00a0The list got so long I got tired. \u00a0So I watched football (which was also on my list!).<\/p>\n

This is a great exercise. I encourage you to try it. \u00a0Really. \u00a0Get a piece of paper and pencil and start making a list. \u00a0If you get stuck, get up and walk around. \u00a0Look. \u00a0 Go online. \u00a0Check email. \u00a0Check Facebook. \u00a0Talk to a friend or neighbor. \u00a0Be creative.<\/p>\n

Try thinking of blessings that you have (and take for granted) every day. \u00a0Go from the most esoteric to the mundane.<\/p>\n

Sound boring? \u00a0What if I told you that doing this will actually make you healthier and have better sex? \u00a0Do I have your attention now? \u00a0Well according to a report in the New York Times<\/a><\/strong>:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Cultivating an \u201cattitude of gratitude\u201d has been linked to better health, sounder sleep,\u00a0less anxiety and depression<\/a><\/strong>, higher long-term satisfaction with life and\u00a0kinder behavior<\/a><\/strong> toward others, including\u00a0romantic partners<\/a><\/strong>.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

So count your blessings. \u00a0Name them one by one. \u00a0There’s so much there. \u00a0We just don’t take time to see it.<\/p>\n

Be healthy. \u00a0Be kind. \u00a0Be romantic.<\/p>\n

Be grateful.<\/p>\n

Happy Thanksgiving.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When I was a boy growing up there was a hymn that I learned in church. \u00a0The song was about counting blessings. \u00a0There was a simplicity in both the melody and the words and the refrain went like this: “Count your many blessings name them one by one. Count your many blessings see what God…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[156],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jerrysjuicebar.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/782"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jerrysjuicebar.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jerrysjuicebar.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jerrysjuicebar.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jerrysjuicebar.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=782"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/jerrysjuicebar.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/782\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":970,"href":"https:\/\/jerrysjuicebar.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/782\/revisions\/970"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jerrysjuicebar.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=782"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jerrysjuicebar.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=782"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jerrysjuicebar.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=782"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}