Gratitude?

A pattern I see every year around this season: when I ask clients what they feel genuinely grateful for, many freeze. They default to the usual answers. Family. Food. A roof. And of course those matter.

But gratitude gets a lot more powerful when we move past the obvious and tap into the parts of life we usually rush past. The quiet stuff. The small wins. The pieces of our daily experience that actually make us feel human.

So here is a list drawn from themes I use in my practice. Consider it a prompt, not a checklist. See what stirs something in you.

A different kind of gratitude list:

• The breath in your lungs and the fact that your body keeps showing up for you

• The people who make your days feel less lonely

• The tiny moments of courage you didn’t know you had in you

• The stories, songs, laughs, ideas and sparks of creativity that brighten your world

• The beauty that catches you off guard

• The people who remind you what tenderness looks like

• The hardships that shaped you into someone stronger and more patient

• The repairs that once felt impossible but happened anyway

• The resilience in your own body and mind, even when you feel worn thin

• The moments of calm that arrive before you know you need them

• The hope that keeps rising in you despite everything

If you want to deepen your gratitude practice, try slowing down long enough to notice one of these in real time. Not in a forced way. Just in a human way.

Gratitude is not about pretending everything is perfect. It is about remembering that even in the mess, you are still here and there is still something worth noticing.