Happiness is itself a kind of Gratitude (Joseph Wood Krutch)

~ Chocolaterunsjudy

gratitude

Gratitude: the quality of being thankful, readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness

It is Thanksgiving week here in the States, and while there is much to be grateful for, today I am filled with gratitude for discovering running. Who knew when I first laced up some running shoes the places it would take me, the friends I would make, the ways it would challenge me?

Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgivings, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings.
–William Arthur Ward

Thank you for taking the time to read and comment
I am also filled with gratitude for having found a community of like minded people after 8 years on WordPress. Yes, WordPress reminded me I signed up 8 years ago. Of course this blog isn’t even 2 years old yet, but first there were several blogs about subjects that won’t surprise my frequent blog readers: the furkids and food.

With those blogs, however, I never found my tribe, and eventually they were left to gather dust and taken down.

I have met such wonderful people — in real life and virtually — through this blog. The community is one of the best parts of blogging.

If you have your health you have everything
That might be overstating things a bit, but the truth is, without your health, life is hard. I am filled with gratitude that my body (with slight protests) does the things I ask it to do.

I think I run my strongest when I run with joy, with gratitude, with focus, with grace.
–Kristin Armstrong

Going on 4 years of maintaining my weight
I am also filled with gratitude for sticking out the hard years with Weight Watchers, the years when I couldn’t lose weight no matter how hard I tried. And when I say years, that’s no exaggeration.

Staying the course paid off in the end. Yes, my weight still fluctuates, but I have been pretty much maintaining my loss for almost 4 years now. Through many hard times. It takes a lot of planning, tracking, dedication, and meetings. But looking in the mirror — and more importantly feeling good about myself — yes, it fills me with gratitude.

Last but not least
I am filled with gratitude that over 31 years ago, Mr. Judy turned to me and said “what do you think about October?”. It might not have been the most romantic of proposals, but indeed, we did get married the following October, just eight months after he proposed.

He makes this blog possible, he supports my crazy ideas (and there are a lot of them), he works hard so that we can take in the hard case furkids. Love you always, honey.

Deb Runs

Tell me in the comments:

What would you add to my gratitude list?

Is gratitude on your mind even if you’re not celebrating Thanksgiving tomorrow?

Do you think about gratitude on days other than Thanksgiving?

38 thoughts on “Happiness is itself a kind of Gratitude (Joseph Wood Krutch)”

  1. I agree with you all the way Judy! Running, health, online friends, husband Im grateful for them all! And remembering to be grateful is important too. Looking back on life, maybe I’m also grateful for the twists and turns, the shocks and surprises that have made life a winding road in the hills instead of a 4lane highway, much more interesting!

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  4. So much to be grateful for! Love your list!

    Love the proposal story…that is so cute! We are Oct. nuptials too….I have a little ways to make 30 yrs….lol!

    I think I think about gratitude more during the holiday season but I do try to be grateful everyday.

    Happy Thanksgiving Judy!

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  7. What a great post 😉 Like you, I am also SO thankful for all that running has brought to me…not “just” the accomplishments I’ve seen my body do, but the many wonderful people who also run and accomplish great things. Thanks for being one of those people 😉

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  9. My current hubby & I met on Oct 25 – 20 years ago. I don’t even remember the proposal so I doubt it was romantic.

    I am grateful for most of the same things as you.

    Have a great Thanksgiving,

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      1. I would have preferred to cook. So the food was just ok. The whole purpose was getting the family together in one place. That was great. And met my nephew’s girl friend And she’s Russian

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      4. Food is ALWAYS the purpose in my family. OMG, you should have seen my Dad practically grabbing a dessert off the counter before the rest of them were out — although that’s partially due to his age.

        It’s always kind of hard, wondering if they’ll be here next year.

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      5. I don’t have many opportunities to cook for a lot of people so I used to enjoy try new recipes each year. That was when I had Wednesday off.

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      6. No way I could have done everything in one day. I was cooking/baking/shopping for weeks.

        At least it was a success & now I have a few favorite recipes nailed down. When I used to do it for friends in TX, we didn’t do turkey — not really my favorite thing, but it actually did turn out pretty good.

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      7. I researched and shopped on Saturday, made the soup and pies on Sunday and the rest the day before or morning of. I did it every year for years. But I never tested the recipes in advance. It was hit or miss.

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      8. Some of the shopping (fresh veggies, turkey) just can’t be purchased that early — butternut squash goes bad too quickly, for instance. And it was soup, salad, roasted veggies, breads, desserts, turkey . . . I also had to get the stuff for the stuffing.

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  11. This is one of my favorites of your blog posts, CRJ. I, too, am grateful for all the wonderful people I’ve met through either facebook or folks’ blogs. Gratitude for all the simple things helps to make our lives joyous.

    Count us among the October weddings! Forty for us.

    Happy Thanksgiving to you and all your family, two-and-four legged.

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  13. You indeed have many things to be grateful for and I fully agree about your health. Taking care of our health and prevention is so important. And I love the blogging community too. So positive and inspirational. Happy thanksgiving.

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      2. Oh, and no cleaning lady for me either! It’s Lloyd’s dad’s recipe. I’ve done other stuffings, both ways, I’m not really a big stuffing fan. Rather save myself for dessert. Of course.

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