An Attitude of Gratitude

By Susan Goodsell - Nov 23 , 2009

“Gratitude” wrote William Faulkner, “is a quality similar to electricity

—it must be produced and discharged and used up in order to exist at all.”

This Thursday, from coast to coast, Americans will be gathering with family and friends to celebrate Thanksgiving Day. And while the focus for many will be watching the NFL triple header, or eating so unabashedly that not just belts, but bathrobes need to be let out, I still hold fast to the vision that the majority of us will keep gratitude in our hearts and minds, giving thanks for life’s many blessings, large and small.

In that spirit, I’ll share my irreverent Top Ten Things I Am Grateful For as a Writer:

1. The tingle of excitement all over when opening a fresh, untouched, pristine Word document, just waiting for my words to flow effortlessly onto it to create new verbal wonders and delights, similar to how I used to feel on opening a spanking new spiral notebook with newly sharpened #2 pencils in hand back in the days of Wilson Elementary. The thrill never lessens for me.

2. My German Shepherd, Kogi, who not only lies at my feet as I write, but who listens intelligently, ears up, head cocked slightly to the side, seemingly agreeing with every idea I toss out to her. She has forgiven me for naming her for Kegogi, which is a Korean dog dish (like naming your pet pig “Pork Chop”).

3. Coffee…lots and lots and lots of coffee, brewed at home or prepared by the lovely attendants at my local Starbucks. It’s not so much about actually drinking it, but about getting a refill or warming up my cup gives me a legitimate reason to get up and walk away when the words just aren’t flowing. (I’ll be right back, gotta reheat my cappuccino…)

4. Borders. The bookstore. I love Borders and spend a lot of time and money there reading, writing, researching, and shopping for myself and others. Probably too much time.

Fact: When my daughter was about nine years old and asked me what “cremated” meant, I explained it to her and said when I died I’d like to be cremated and then she should take my ashes to someplace very special to me.

“You mean, like Borders?” my precocious girl asked.

5. The above-mentioned daughter, who is now 16 years old and requires little more from her mother than enormous quantities of cereal and milk (which she eats for any and all meals), her allowance, and the occasional ride to the mall so she can spend her allowance. Gone are the days when finding time to write meant working around a toddler’s constant demands…when a week would pass and I’d realize in seven days I had managed to write only 182 words and a grocery list!

6. Editors who can be brutally honest without being brutal. You know who you are. Feedback is a gift, even when it’s painful!

7. My sparkling jewels of life experiences – the fascinating bad along with all the impossibly wonderful good. As a writer, I eventually find a use for them all. Mentally going through my memories is like flipping the pages in a virtual scrapbook. I get to cerebrate and celebrate the good, the bad, and even the ugly yet again, reveling in the sure knowledge that it’s truly cathartic—and cheaper than therapy.

8. Dark chocolate. Bittersweet. 70% cacao at least. The antioxidants keep me healthy (right??) and it’s the perfect way to drown my sorrows if some writing of mine is (horror of horrors!) rejected.

9. The fact that most people think writers are just a little off, anyway. This means I can sit by myself at a table in Borders, mumbling to myself with my eyes closed or tapping my forehead, whispering repeatedly “Think! Think!” and if anyone stares at me, the kind employees will simply whisper, “She’s a writer, y’know” and that explains everything. It’s also why it’s okay that my neighbors have seen me in my pajamas at 4:30 in the afternoon and not ‘tsk tsked’ me!

10. Books. I am a voracious reader who never seems to get enough of the written word. I sometimes come across passages that are crafted so brilliantly, so perfectly, that it makes my heart quicken. I have great respect for wordsmiths. The first step in becoming a writer is loving to read.

German philosopher Meister Eckhart was quoted as saying, “If the only prayer you said in your whole life was, “Thank you,” that would suffice.” So to you, dear reader, I will end with a sincere, “Thank you for reading me. Without you, there would be no point.”

This Thursday as you count your blessings, keep in mind that the true measure of giving thanks is remembering our blessings and actively paying them forward the other 364 days of the year, as Faulkner so wisely suggested.

Happy Thanksgiving to writers everywhere, one and all!!!