The land is still this morning as I walk through the meadow. A few birds are waking and the owls are hooting their last before they sleep. The grass is wet on my boots and Moose (our dog) sniffs the path taking stock of which animals have roamed in the past 24 hours. There is great peace here on the cusp of night turning to morning.

I am lucky. My mind is with me this morning. It is with my neice and the thousands others who live thousands of miles away on the east coast of Canada. My mind is with the family who’s house is in the media because it is floating in a river. I am thankful my neice is safe in it all, but sad for so many who’s lives have been turned upside down by the storm.

Life is full of mixed emotions – I am grateful for my ‘blessings’ and sad for the challenges others face. Life is also full of conundrums and inequality – I have immense privilege simply because of the colour of my skin and my gender, while others are discriminated against simply because of theirs.

And many of us of have bought into the belief that it is in the accumulating that we find perfection and happiness. We want more. However, as Antoine de Saint-Exupéry said, “Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.” And so, perfection (and happiness?) might be achieved in gratefulness and sharing rather than accumulating. Gratefulness for what we have and sharing it with others. We don’t need to compete or hoard, there is more than enough to go around.

But perhaps today start with gratefulness. Who are you grateful for today?

Go tell them.

Photo by Jon Phillips