Gratitude for Simple Pleasures

It is often said that a contented person is the one who finds joy in the small, little, simple things of life.

After her cancer diagnosis when she was in her 20s, my cousin Amanda would have been quick to agree with that statement. She was eager to talk about what she called ten-cent gifts.

She explained that we would be excited if someone gave us a $10,000 gift and we would tell everyone about it. But a ten-cent gift; it could seem so small and unimportant that we might even ignore it.

She would go on to clarify that one million ten-cent gifts still equal $10,000. She believed God gives us $10,000 gifts as well as millions of ten-cent gifts.

For Amanda, the ten-thousand-dollar gifts were the love of her mom, her dad, her brother and sister-in-law and nephews. Another was the totally unexpected gift of her husband coming into her life, the surprising gift of pregnancy and the birth of her son Colten and seeing his first Christmas and birthday. She would also express gratitude for a powerful blizzard that kept Colten’s two grandmas at his house so they were present to see the toddler’s first steps.

Ten-Cent Gifts

But she also recognized and praised God for what she called the ten-cent gifts. She and her husband Dave would have fun pointing them out to one another. Amanda’s list included: feeling well enough—despite the cancer—to talk on the phone, to answer emails, and to take a shower; taking the day off with Dave; a good night’s sleep; encouraging emails from friends; having nice nurses and doctors; reaching out to talk with other patients in the hospital; making dinner; and feeling well enough to get on the floor and play with Colten. Sadly, Amanda passed away before Colten’s second birthday.

Last week, Rev. John Gantt reminded us in his blog, that practicing ThanksLiving–a general attitude of gratitude for everyday moments that bring us joy, happiness, peace, and contentment–can bring a variety of benefits including a boost in resilience and more ease to manage life’s many challenges.

Amanda would have heartily agreed.

What Are Your Ten-Cent Gifts?

So on this Thanksgiving Day 2024, when our world can seem chaotic and divided, take a few minutes to log off your screens (after finishing this blog, of course) and spend some time to feel gratitude for your 10-cent gifts. You might even want to make a list.

To help you get started, here is my list of simple and not-so-ordinary pleasures for which I am grateful.

• Having a toddler reach up to give me a hug and kiss
• An unforgettable story (whether in a book, on stage, in a movie, on TV, or from someone’s life)
• Baptizing a baby – as a pastor, one of my favorite things to do!
• Candlelight service, especially on Christmas Eve, as well as Christmas carols, lights and Christmas trees
• Cold ice water to drink on a hot day
• Discovering a new TV show that is available for binge watching
• Coming up with a Scrabble word that puts the letter “z” on the triple letter square.
• Great sing-along song (American Pie. for example)
• Exploring small towns (especially in a foreign country)
• Fireflies (although lightning bugs sound more dramatic)
• Good thunderstorm with dramatic lightning (which does no damage, natch)
• Hot bath with a good book
• It’s all about the sauce (cheese, hollandaise, BBQ. alfredo)
• Making a baby smile or laugh (and don’t we grown-ups think we’re so special when we do?)
• Peanut butter (creamy) and jelly (grape)
• Decorating my Christmas tree and remembering all the friends who have given me ornaments and places where I traveled and got an ornament (see photo)
  
• Someone brushing my hair/rubbing my back
• Playing video games with my nephew
• Seeing a rainbow
• Reading something written by one of my godkids
• Laughing so hard while retelling a story for the 25th time with a long-time friend
• Shooting Stars
• Playing peek-a-book with a toddler
• Sitting by a babbling brook or a rushing river or on an ocean beach
• The smell of brownies baking
• Surrounded by warm blankets on a cold night
• Hitting the snooze button and doing it 2-3 times before needing to get up
• The color blue
• Fields of tulips
• Playing bar trivia with a fun (not super competitive) group of people
• Talking with a friend (or even a stranger) to review a movie we’ve just seen
• Snowstorms when I am watching them from inside
• Listening to my nieces sing in church, in a musical or on Facebook
• Finding the exact right size batteries that are needed in the junk drawer

What are the simple blessings that bring you joy?

United Church Homes is blessed by so many of you. Speaking on behalf of the entire United Church Homes staff in our more than 90 senior independent and assisted living, affordable housing, rehab, memory care, and skilled nursing communities as well as administrative offices, we are extraordinarily grateful for you—that you read our blog, volunteer your time, and make contributions that support older adults to age more abundantly.

For Reflection (either individually or with a group)

Read the blog. Read it a second time, maybe reading it aloud or asking someone else to read it aloud so you can hear it with different intonation and emphases. Invite the Divine to open your heart to allow the light of new understanding to pierce the shadows of embedded assumptions, stereotypes, and ways of thinking so that you may live more abundantly. Then spend some time with the following questions together with anything or anyone who helps you reflect more deeply.

• What are the simple pleasures you enjoy on Thanksgiving Day?
• What is your favorite Thanksgiving Day memory?
• What do you do or could you do to bring a simple pleasure to someone else?

Download a pdf including the Reflection Questions to share and discuss with friends, family, or members of your faith community small group.