Gratitude is Every Day

In her immensely beautiful book Braiding Sweetgrass, indigineous botanist and author Robin Wall Kimmerer describes the daily Onondaga Nation ritual known as the Thanksgiving Address. Known more accurately in the Onondaga language as “The Words That Come Before All Else,” this extensive daily recitation is a protocol that sets gratitude as the highest priority.

Today we have gathered and when we look upon the faces around us we see that the cycles of life continue. We have been given the duty to live in balance and harmony with each other and all living things. So now let us bring our minds together as one as we give greetings and thanks to each other as People. Now our minds are one.

The ability to manifest this level of gratitude is no accident. It is, in fact, a discipline. No day starts before giving thanks. I ask myself, how could we each transform ourselves and change our communities through a similar commitment to gratitude?

Gratitude has been IOB’s north star since the very beginning. Our organization is simply not possible without the contributions of hundreds of mentors and volunteers, the trust of students and families, and the support we receive from foundations, donors, and partners. In the early years, it was Margaret and I drinking coffee on the couch in the morning, marveling at all the ways our community came together to create Islands of Brilliance. Now with a growing staff, there is not a day that goes by without our gratitude being expressed in meetings, on our Discord channel (a chat platform), or when we meet in person like we did together this morning to share our collective thanks.

Accessing gratitude

Let’s be honest. The last twenty months, finding the capacity to feel gratitude has been challenging. Who has not felt overwhelmed, wooden to the core, or unable to make sense of the world around us? Each day many of us are constantly challenged—by isolation, anxiety, fatigue, sorrow. How do we break this cycle of feeling down, of facing another day of navigating ambiguity?

I will raise my hand. Many, many days have been a struggle. Trying to stay positive, to find motivation, to remain hopeful. Our rhythms and practices have been disrupted. Healthy habits abandoned for things that bring comfort. Finding our way back to old routines will take time. We grow impatient with ourselves. How do we begin?

Gratitude is the opposite of distraction

In a world turned upside down, how do we cope? Anyone been binge-scrolling, binge-watching, binge-eating, or binge-shopping? It’s easy to seek comfort in ways that aren’t always the healthiest of choices. (See my Instagram feed: binge cooking and binge eating). And actually, some level of indulgence is perfectly okay. These choices act as distractions from the anxiety and discomfort that we feel.

Gratitude—and more specifically the practice of gratitude—demands our attention. It asks that we be fully present to appreciate what we do have, what we can control, and what truly is the source of happiness. There’s compelling science behind gratitude. When we express gratitude and receive the same, our brain releases dopamine and serotonin, the two crucial neurotransmitters responsible for our emotions, and they make us feel 'good'. They enhance our mood immediately, making us feel happy from the inside.

Happiness is a discipline

Many of us experience happiness as a fleeting moment, or a period of our life that felt like it went too quickly. It is the cardinal on a snowy day that perches on a branch outside the window, then suddenly flies away. If only we could make it last longer.

The truth is, we can. Happiness truly is a discipline. Our culture has done a great job of embracing workout routines as a necessity in life, but it’s time we started embracing wellbeing routines as well.

I’m going to share a few practices, both personal and pulled from the core beliefs of Islands of Brilliance as an organization, that hopefully will inspire and that you can find a way to make your own.

Good. Morning. Mantra.

I am usually the first one up in our home each day. I actually love the dark mornings of November, the quiet, the solitude, an opportunity to reflect and prepare. I start the coffee maker, sit on the couch, and…breathe.

I have a silent mantra I recite throughout the day: Thank you for this breath, thank you for this day, thank you for this life. The first recitation is during those first gloaming moments of the morning. This simple mantra pops up throughout the day. Sometimes it expands a bit, but its presence acts as a metronome to rebalance me when I need it throughout the day.

Find a gratitude-centered mantra that works for you. Make an active effort to return to it throughout the day. (Catch yourself doom-scrolling? Put down the phone, breathe, and focus on your mantra). It’s simple, it works, and it’s all yours.

Take good care of yourself

This is pulled from IOB’s core values. Every team member pours their heart, soul, and energy into their role. That makes it important to find ways to replenish your energy.

Each of us has an internal gyroscope. It’s your circle of family and close friends, your hobbies, your activities, your interests, your go to places that keep you sane.

Cultivate those. Take time for those. Prioritizing your wellbeing isn’t selfish, it’s essential. The best you is a healthy, happy, whole you. We need that version of you in the world right now.

See the life in everything

I find this to be a wonderful practice. Let me take you through it.

I’d imagine that the place you call home is a source of gratitude. I know our home is. We live in a wonderful 117 year old home right on the northern edge of the UW-Milwaukee campus. There is a calm energy associated with it, that Margaret and I noticed the moment we moved in. When I say “seeing the life in everything” it means taking a historical inventory of what makes up the things that surround us. In the case of our home, it’s age is remarkable, but what’s even more amazing is when you examine the things that made it.

The woodwork throughout our house is beautiful. Think about that for a minute. That woodwork was made from mature oak trees that could have been a hundred, if not hundreds of years old. The trees that support us, easily date from the early 1800s and perhaps from before the Constitution was written. Let’s go further. Where did the trees come from? Did they overlook a river, a valley? Think about the purity of the rain that nourished them. Who were the craftsmen that turned them into railings, flooring, and joists?

When you pause to see the life around you, you begin to open your eyes to the interconnectedness of everything. Our home truly isn’t our home. It is a cumulative miracle of nature, time, craft, community, family, and love.

I hope one of these practices resonates with you. We have a saying here at Islands of Brilliance “Today, We Climb Again.” Every day is a new day, a new adventure, another chance to be amazed. Make sure to breathe, to be in the now, and be thankful for what you’ll get to see. Let’s all agree to laugh, celebrate, and cry together. We only get one chance, and we won’t be passing this way again.

Happy Thanksgiving to you, your family, and all of your loved ones.