Finding blessings along the way

CINDY TRANE CHRISTESON

“The best things are nearest: breath in your nostrils, light in your

eyes, flowers at your feet, duties at your hand, the path of God just

before you. Then do not grasp at the stars, but do life’s plain,

common work as it comes, certain that daily duties and daily bread

are the sweetest things of life.”

-- ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON

I headed out for a walk on a recent morning and decided to go a

different direction than normal. I passed a woman I hadn’t seen in

quite some time and we walked and talked for several blocks. We both

commented that we didn’t know if it was going to stay cold and dreary

or change to hot and windy.

“My moods have been as unpredictable as the weather,” she said.

Our discussion went from weather and moods to life and God. She

then explained that she’d recently tried to start and end her day by

not only thanking God for who he is, but also for ways that he had

blessed her life.

“It seems to be helping with my moods,” she said.

It reminded me of a conversation with another friend who told me

she keeps a “Blessing Journal” to record things she is thankful for

that happened during the day. She told me that each night, she writes

down five different things or events.

I remember she said that some days she wrote about simple things

in life, such as birds singing or children laughing. She had said

that the nightly practice of focusing on the positive things helped

her sleep better and also had been an important tool in helping her

out of a depression. I recall that she said the point was that there

are always things to thank God for, even when life is challenging.

I explained this to my friend on the walk and we decided to name

five things we noticed around us. We had come to a dirt path and we

both smiled as a small rabbit hopped in front of us and then into the

bushes. I appreciated the deep blue sky and swirling clouds.

As we rounded a corner, we passed a mother pushing a stroller with

a little boy all dressed in blue, wearing a red baseball cap. His

smile stretched from ear to ear and he was clapping and giggling. His

smile was contagious and my friend said that she counted babies and

smiles as blessings. I agreed and gave her the latest update on our

little granddaughter Mary, who has a smile that seems to go from the

top of her curly hair to the tip of her toes.

We stopped for some water at a drinking fountain, and agreed we

were thankful for water. My friend and then I headed our different

directions, but agreed that we were thankful for our time together.

“We’ll have to go on another ‘Blessing Walk,’” I said.

As I headed home, the wind started to pick up and it blew some of

the changing leaves off the trees. I thanked God for wind and trees.

In case you are trying to keep track, we came up with more than

five things in a short amount of time. When it comes to counting

blessings, the list goes on and on.

And you can quote me on that.

* CINDY TRANE CHRISTESON is a Newport Beach resident who speaks

frequently to parenting groups. She may be reached via e-mail at

[email protected] or through the mail at 537 Newport Center Drive,

Box 505, Newport Beach, CA 92660.