We tire of unpredictable weather, the damp morning chill, wet socks and lost mittens. Winter keeps reminding it is not through with us.
We have suffered long enough.
The streets are tired and dirty and the time change only makes things darker in the morning.
We need a brighter view.
We need, now, the renewal that comes with spring.
03/20/2023 j.g.l.
Progress comes less from planning than participation.
Dreams and wishes require action and attention.
Start moving.
03/19/2023 j.g.l.
If we wait too long
for the stars to align, for
some kind of hope, or
some kind of sign,
if we let our lives hang on
still-bated breath, we will
forever wonder
what is still to come
or what we have left. If we
don’t own the moments,
or make them our own,
will we ever feel like
we’ve made our way home?
If we can’t be honest
with others, and especially
our selves,
can we ever explain why
or how
we once felt?
If we wait too long, it
may never arrive.
Stop waiting,
start doing,
start feeling alive.
© 2016 j.g. lewis
I'm like a pencil;
sometimes sharp,
most days
well-rounded,
other times
dull or
occasionally
broken.
Still I write.
j.g. lewis
is a writer/photographer in Toronto.
How thankful are you?
Do you, each day, express your gratitude to those deserving of acknowledgement?
I know I don’t, certainly not often enough, and I have so much to be thankful for. We all do. Yet, how many of us practice an attitude of gratitude?
There are so many things to be thankful for, and even more people.
I was reminded very early this morning as I listened to a podcast. It was too dark to get up and too warm under my covers, so I selected the most recent TED Radio Hour episode entitled The Gratitude Chain.
In the podcast, lifestyle experimental journalist A.J. Jacobs talks about his latest book Thanks a Thousand: A Gratitude Journey, in which he thanks everybody involved in making his morning cup of coffee; from the barista to the workers who harvested the beans.
Coffee is a subject near and dear to my heart, especially morning coffee (the best kind), so I settled in for a good listen.
Jacobs has a reputation for deeply exploring a concept when he writes, perhaps most widely known for his 2007 book The Year of Living Dangerously: One Man’s Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible.
Interesting about this particular extended TED talk was that Jacobs included in podcasts that inspired him, those he was most thankful for, during the writing of the book.
I could write so much more on this topic, and the overall benefits of gratitude, but would encourage you to listen to this work.
I’m thankful I did.
I was again reminded that we don’t express our personal gratitude enough to those who care, those who listen, and those who furnish our lives with good food, good company and conversation and, yes, good coffee.
Thank you.
02/22/2021 j.g.l.
