A Heart Filled With Gratitude

“This is the day the Lord has made; let me rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalm 118:24)

This is one of my favorite verses in the Bible because it teaches us gratefulness. For years, I’ve started every journal entry with that acknowledgment, but this singular Thursday, I wanted to take a page out of my journal and share it with you all. I wanted to express gratitude for all the gifts I’ve been given in this life, some of which I might have taken for granted and seldom think to be thankful for.

Like the air I breathe, pure and reinvigorating, fueling and healing my body, and not the toxicity breathed in other parts of the world, still reeling from the effects of man.

I am grateful for today’s clear blue skies, a sign that Nature is at peace and feeling benevolent toward us.

I thank God for the leafless cherry blossom tree outside my window, knowing that come Spring, it will offer me a feast for the eyes for ten glorious days. I am also thankful for the bushes near our front porch that remain green and vibrant, reminding me there is always hope and life, even through the coldest winters.

I am grateful for this quiet neighborhood and respectful neighbors, a place where my little grandsons can run, play, and grow. And be safe.

I am grateful for the little birds that come to our window, the bluejays and other little finches, whose gentle hopping from branch to branch and little tweets delight my grandsons.

I am grateful for the sounds of life around me, whether it’s the inconvenient lawnmower on an early Saturday morning when I am hoping to catch some extra Z’s, or the loud firetrucks whizzing by, sirens wailing, because it means that I can hear. I am grateful for the sights, for the aromas, for the taste, for the touch and feel of this exquisitely beautiful world.

I am grateful for the maelstrom of emotions inside of me because it means that I am alive and fully in the present. In a recent conversation with my friend Lucia, she told me how many people move through life disconnected from the world or unable to process events around them and in their own lives because they aren’t emotionally literate. I had never heard this term before. Her mission is to teach them, especially women, to experience their full range of emotions in a safe space through art therapy and storytelling. What a beautiful undertaking. I am grateful for people like my friend. The world needs more of them.

I am grateful for my daughters, for the women that they are and the fierce way they love me back. I am grateful for Sacha and Samir, my little ones, for the unconditional love they give me and for the innocence (and sometimes, mischief) in their eyes. I feel so blessed to be present in their lives and to have the privilege of witnessing and contributing to their growth. And for this, I am also grateful to “Dada”.

I am grateful for the years of love and support my mother has gifted me, for the elegance she always displayed, her countless talents, and the strength and resilience she showed when life wasn’t kind to her. These are lessons not lost on me, a quiet and gentle modeling that has made me the woman I am today.

I am also grateful for my father and the spirit of independence he instilled in me. He taught me to be ambitious but never envious of others and what they have. “All in life is acquired through great sacrifice,” he always told me. “Never have your eyes on what people have worked for. If you want something, work hard for it with honesty and integrity.” These are values I cherish.

I am grateful for my family, the ones who always loved and supported me, and never took from me. I am grateful for my brothers and my cousins, who have been more like sisters. Even when life has tested us. You know who you are.

I am grateful for my beautiful friends, those who have been in my life since childhood, who have always stuck by my side and provided whatever I needed whenever I needed it. A hug, a shoulder to cry on, a little help, a way out… For those whom I acquired later in life and who have become more than family, but soul sisters, my soul mates. I am grateful for my new friends, those whose presence feels ancient, like they’ve always been here.

I am grateful for the men in my life for the tenderness, the love, the attention, the indifference, the laughter, the conversations, and the clarity of knowing what I absolutely cannot live without.

I am grateful for the gift of writing, for a head full of characters and stories to tell. Be patient. They’re coming.

I am grateful for my poetry, the wonderful therapist I could never afford, for the clarity and peace it brings me.

I am grateful for the work experience that has shown me firsthand what is wrong with the world and humanity, but also what is right with both, and how they can be leveraged to bring solutions and drastically improve people’s lives.

I am grateful for all the lessons that life has taught me, through the choices I have made, sound or lacking, and how they have shaped my views and passions.

I am grateful for Haiti. She has taken so much from me, but has given me so much more. She has taught me some of the toughest lessons in my life. She has shown me my strengths and my weaknesses. And she has also shown me that one can always rise from the ashes in the most unexpected ways. Grenadiers, à l’assaut. Chapeau!

I am grateful for the vision I have for my life, and the direction it has given me. For the determination, perseverance, and self-belief in the midst of doubt. I am grateful for so much more than I could ever put into words.

I am grateful to my God for the protection, the shelter, the grace, the companionship, and the love I have always felt in His mighty presence. I am grateful for this Thanksgiving and the opportunity to stop, assess, and realize just how blessed I truly am.

My wish for all of you is that you take a moment to acknowledge the beautiful gifts in your lives and see how life can be improved if we see it through the lens of gratitude. Perhaps one of the greatest gifts we’ve been given is the ability to dream, to see beyond our material lives, to recognize our soul’s purpose, and find our own personal mission in life. Always with love and compassion in our hearts, and, of course, gratitude.

Happy Thanksgiving, my friends!

From my heart to yours.