Several posts ago I wrote about forgiveness. Forgiveness and gratitude share the same spectrum regarding outlook or attitude. Forgiveness opens the heart by dissolving scars of hurt that made us tight and irritable. With a more open heart gratitude flows naturally. We feel grateful even for the people who hurt us, for it was their actions that catalyzed our transforming hurts into forgiveness. So they deserve our gratitude. In fact everything becomes a cause for gratitude. We can feel grateful when we wake up having not died in our sleep. We can feel grateful for the next breath we take in, for the previous outbreath was not our last. We can feel gratitude for all kind mother sentient beings who at one time deeply loved and nurtured us like the mother, or other significant person, in this life. Allow the feeling of gratitude to radiate out to all those around us, both near and far.
