Pure – The Sound of Gratitude
Posted: June 30, 2014 Filed under: Meditation, Yoga | Tags: blogging, compassion, cycling, exercise, free range, freshly pressed, friends, gluten free, gratitude, Grief, happiness, health, hope, kindness, life, love, marathon, meditation, motivation, natural, nature, Omaha, pain, paleo, passion, perspective, pilates, running, sorrow, trail running, whole foods, writing, yoga, Zen 15 CommentsMy expectations were reduced to zero when I was 21. Everything since then has been a bonus-
This past Thursday I walked into a local novelty store in the Omaha Old Market. “Good afternoon – How are you?” A kind worker asked me, a little too enthusiastic for the morning I was having. Life has been dreadful so far this Summer, and facing some stressful moments at the time … I did not shy away pretending all was fine.
I muttered, “I’m OK.” She replied back while stocking gift cards in a display, “Just OK? Not awesome? It’s a beautiful day outside! Cheer up dude, you should be thankful for what you have?”
…
There was no smile on my face this particular day. Although I still had gratitude and joy in my heart. Sometimes, expressing kindness and giving thanks does not require a peppy cheerleading routine.
Daily Meditation:
The message I am sharing today is a touch different from the norm around these parts. Simply put – There are times when we are experiencing difficult moments in our lives, and its hard to be – Awesome. Sometimes, openly telling others to “cheer up” and “be thankful for what you have” is a strategy for avoiding what they may be going through in the moment, the pain, the hurting and struggle.
It’s really easy to tell someone to cheer up. Rather than taking a moment to listen to what is going on in their lives…
All of us will face difficult moments in our lives, piss poor marathon this past weekend, stress at work and whatever else. Grief is a part of life and no matter how hard we try – we will never outrun it. We don’t have to have everything going right in order to be thankful, to express ever lasting kindness, in any situation.
CultFit 
I have a friend like that– an overly cheerful attitude that tries to fix everything. As you write sometimes I don’t want to be cheered up- I just want them to shut up and listen. But I do believe the intention behind the cheerfulness is to support. Yet somehow it makes me feel worse.
I often find myself doing both at times, being overly cheery, and not listening … And at the end of the day, its a lack of mindfulness and being sensitive to the needs of others. This is a really wide-ranging topic, although I keep coming back to a few key words – kindness, gentleness and compassion. 🙂
Yes, I did detect a hint of annoyance in this post 😉 Sorry you are having a hard time.
I agree. So many in our culture run from the hard stuff. I had someone die every six years of my life, close people, and no one allowed me my grief or even discussed it. By the time I was 24 I ended up in the first of my severe depression bouts, having to drop out of college for a semester…something I had to fight my parents over to do. ( i went back to college late, had a child to support). The depression was the result of so many years of stuffed grief and anger.
Hope you have friends that will listen to you and support you through your trying times.
I’m fortunate to have a good group of friends and family members here to listen … I have been trying their patience of late being hurt all of the time 🙂
Glad you’ve got a good support network. Sorry you are hurting so much. Hope you are feeling better soon!
So many blog posts, facebook posts etc only talk about sunshine and roses. Well, it does rain some days and life isn’t always wonderful.
Maybe we need to share more of our challenges with our readers. Bloggers are not immune from life’s struggles and as writers we may be able to help someone. They may realize that other people have problems also. Maybe how we deal with our challenges will help them deal with theirs.
Sometimes venting about our personal issues is cathartic and can help us move on. I’m not entirely comfortable writing these types of posts, but if we want to be real we should be sharing the bad with the good.
I often find myself sharing with others – keeping it “real” stories when training or whatever really. Heck, even with myself during a long ride out in the middle of nowhere. I passionately feel that we have more to learn through our mistakes, rather than through our successes. Especially when we blog and share our stories openly with others. The last couple of weeks have been tough around here, and my emotions have spilled over to those around me – long story short – A friend asked me about a series of endurance gravel rides coming up in the area and how he should prepare. Normally, typically … I highlight the positives and touch on the negatives. Not this time, and you know what? When he finished up he told me he was better prepared knowing honestly what to expect during the race. I’m starting to do this more with my Son as he grows older as well, my father did the same with me and it helped immensely growing up. Life is dirty at times, best to roll up your sleeves and get to work.
“expressing kindness and giving thanks does not require a peppy cheerleading routine”. I have a certain Starbucks barista that needs to learn this.
You do as well? 😉 My trick is redirect and ask them the very same questions … And needless to say I have been fortunate to forge some pretty solid friendships doing so, and free coffee and treats as well! May your heart be filled with happiness this afternoon – Take care!
My boss is like this…..so unrealistically cheery every second of every day that no one feels they can talk to her. While she thinks she’s spreading sunshine, she’s really alienating her staff. For several years, I would be SO irritated by this habit……but then I learned to have compassion for her. I discovered that she had a “Golden” childhood……and methinks she is still trying to earn praise and love through her smiles and cute dance moves.
Hmm “Golden Childhood” … I completely understand the picture you are painting. 😉
As you know, my humble blog-o-thing, is more of a “life” blog than a cheery, flowers and sunshine sort of blog. Not that there is anything wrong with that … To be fully open – Like flat out sucks at times, and there is no amount of hi-fives, smiles and pep talks that will change that. Sometimes we have to trudge through the filth and muck to see us through to the other side.
Thank you for liking my article on meditation. I love writing about Yoga and Spirituality. I love following your blog. Regards!
Thank you, immensely, for your kind thoughts and gratitude. I’m sincerely humbled my your words. Take care my friend and be well.
This put me in mind of a short video I like… painting over some stains won’t work, but at some time or another we hope it will.
Thank you so much for sharing this! May your heart be filled with warmth and happiness – Take care my friend.