A Morning Walk on the Beach

10/20: I’ve not written here in two months.  People ask if I no longer have things to be grateful for or if the things I’m grateful for are so constant they’re not worth writing about.  Neither really applies.  You can always find something to be grateful for.  Think outside the box.  Sometimes it can be as simple as having a cup of coffee warm your hands on a cold morning, a good night’s sleep after a string of sleepless nights, or someone bestowing a smile for no reason other than kindness.  Most days there are a multitude of these moments so there’s no shortage of material.  There can be repetition, especially if there are a lot of sleepless nights or cold mornings, but it’s not often enough to be an excuse.

No, I stopped writing because the task of writing ABOUT my source of gratitude became monumental.  You know, one of those things you build up in your mind to be hugely out of proportion to the problem at hand.  And some days the world feels so heavy and the joyful moments so powerful it just doesn’t seem possible to translate either into words.  This must be what writer’s block feels like.

It’s not like I have to deliver an essay or short story in every blog post.  It’s not a writing class; I’m not being graded.  I’m not aiming for a Pulitzer or have a secret desire to be discovered…..well, maybe just a little on that last one.  So I go back to that cup of coffee, that good night’s sleep, and I ask myself, why can’t the writing also be simple?   Isn’t the intent to find and share the gratitude in every day life?  Can’t that be done with a simple acknowledgement?  A few short sentences?

Don’t overthink it.  Don’t get lost in the writing.

So here’s what I’m grateful for today.  A short respite between heat waves.  A morning walk on the beach.  The power and beauty of stormy seas.  Short bursts of rain on my face.  The colors and textures of all that washes ashore.  A rainbow.