I appreciated you at the time. But now that your petals have fallen even more so.
Gratitude Forgotten and Remembered
Those of you who have been here remember that I used to have a segment in these writings where I shared "forgotten gratitude". These were things that I was grateful for at the time and then later when I wrote down my gratitude I forgot all about them. Then later I would remember them and share them in that segment. Although I no longer have that segment in these writings the phenomenon is still a part of my gratitude practice.
Most recently this happened with tulips I received on Easter. I was grateful to receive them. Then the next few days as I engaged with them and observed the flowers doing that dance that tulips do I felt grateful again. The petals on one of the three flowers began to drop and I realized that I didn't have much time left with these blooms so I made sure to pay even more attention to them. And when I pay attention to something beautiful gratitude can't help but emerge. Today I noticed that all of the petals were now fallen and I realized that not once did all of these many moments of gratitude emerge in my written practice.
This happens all the time. My written practice of three gratitudes each day is never a complete inventory of all of the moments of gratitude I experienced. How could it be? Three things to be grateful for after 24 (give or take) hours of collecting moments of gratitude. The gratitude that emerges in my writing is whatever is true for me in that moment. It is a snapshot. A moment in time.
What I like about this concept of forgotten gratitude is that eventually it is remembered. And when it is remembered it springs back to life. Alive with the memory of feeling grateful. Sometimes I wasn't even grateful for it in the moment. Maybe in that moment I noticed it but it wasn't until later upon reflection that I realize that it was gratitude that was pouring out of my heart. What I find lovely about this remembering is that it is a reminder to notice. It is a reminder that the nostalgia I feel is not locked in the past. It reminds me to notice and appreciate what is in front of me.
This happened yet again with the tulips. I was thinking about how much I appreciated the beauty of those blooms with the light shining through the petals. And as that memory passed I looked over at the petalless stems and leaves and was again filled with gratitude. The stems and leaves were still curving, a graceful dance. The sunlight was shining on the pistils and stamen and the light and shadows were bringing the leaves to life. This nostalgia for the tulips at full bloom brought my attention to them as they are today. And there was beauty there and I was paying attention and I was grateful.
What a beautiful reminder. So often when I am nostalgic I just let my thoughts linger on what once was. Today was a reminder that there is still gratitude to be found in what is left in the absence.
I can only note that the past is beautiful because one never realises an emotion at the time. It expands later, and thus we don’t have complete emotions about the present, only about the past.
~Virginia Woolf
What is something you were grateful for last week?
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[su_note note_color=”#e7e7e7″ text_color=”#686767″ radius=”0″] My gratitude journey started in May 2011 and continues to this day. Thank you for being a part of it! A daily gratitude practice is simple. Write down three things you are grateful for each day. Download your free GratitudeGuide. My clients focus on gratitude and learn from their successes to make the positive changes they want in their lives. You can too. Call me to set up our first meeting 505.333.9336. [/su_note]