These Things Before Me

Thank you for this bed; this carpet; this table; this fan; this glass of water; this pen and paper; this bathroom; this cell phone; this window; this air. All these things are privileges. Nothing earns me the right to have them. I have done nothing to deserve them. I do not know a day of hard labor. I don't know what it's like to be separated from my family. I know no great suffering and, yet, here they are: my bed; my glass of clean drinking water sitting beside me. Here are all these things I don't deserve. For that I am grateful. I am grateful to have a place to sleep, water to drink, air to breathe; my life. Thank you for this and an infinite amount more; for things I haven't written because they don't even occur to me because you don't know what you have until it's taken away. Thank you for opening my mind. May I never cease being grateful.

Subway Trains

Public transit is an amazing thing. Just sit and ride. Effortless. Efficient. Do I have to walk to my job interviews from Queens? Nope. Just hop on the subway and it does the work for me. I don't have to show up sweaty and aching because I had to walk countless miles. Amazing. Thank you. You're a life saver. May I never complain when there is a delay because without you, the delay would be far greater.

Pillows

They are like an extension of the mattress and make sleeping more pleasant. From sawdust to down, they are stuffed with comfort. So comfort me tonight and may you grant me better sleep so that tomorrow I may better able experience the day.

Running

Thank you for the ability to run. It forces fresh air deep into my lungs as I experience this rich landscape. It is meditative. It is relaxing. It opens me up to the world. By doing it, I am using my body; making it work together. In return, my body becomes stronger and healthier. It becomes synchronized. Just as it becomes synchronized with itself, I become synchronized with the world and all it takes are a few steps on the pavement. I have this incredible body which is capable of amazing, amazing things and I am thankful to be able to use it while I still have it. Happy running.

Things to be Thankful For

I am thankful that I have so many things to be thankful for. An infinite list that already exists in its entirety. I am merely drawing attention to a single thing in this particular moment. This infinite list exists, always, all around me. I can only practice seeing it more often. This practice IS life.

This Fan

Without it, I would be hot and sticky and sleep would become difficult to find. It blows the natural air, already existing, toward my body. The air molecules collide with the molecules that form my skin. My skin communicates and passes on its energy to the air, cooling it down. So thank you for blowing, fan. Thank you for sending billions upon billions of your oxygenated friends to meet me. Keep it up.

Dirt

Thank you for dirt. You are the dirtiest dirt I know and you are the soil in which life is cultivated. Thank god we haven't paved the earth over and that you still exist and can be found everywhere. So what if I get a little on my shoes or pants. I say wear it as a badge of honor. I am walking around with a little earth on me. Blue Planet. So thank you. May I always carry a little bit of you with me wherever I go.

Emptiness

I am thankful for emptiness. I am thankful to be able to perceive endlessly; to never be filled; to let infinity pass through me like a breeze; to focus; to listen, to truly listen. May I never be full. Thank you.

Learning About Me

I am thankful to always be learning more about my body. I am inseparable from it and it grants me the ability to do everything I am able. I can tell it to run, lift, play a chord, hold a fork, shake a hand. But in everything I do, it tells ME something. These messages let me know more about this amazing vehicle I'm cruising through life in. So may I always be open to these messages and never cease to learn more about myself. Thank you for being my body. I'll do the best I can to take care of you.

Food to Eat

May I never cease to be grateful for what things I do have. I am thankful for the abundance of food that I have all around me. I do not feel the pangs of hunger because I can just walk over to the fridge and grab something to eat. Dinner is never IF I will eat but WHEN and WHERE. It has become so automatic that it's a chore to go to the grocery store. Every time I eat, I should look at the food before me and say "thank you." Thank you for feeding my body. Thank you for feeding my mind. Thank you that I don't know what going hungry is. May I let no morsel go unnoticed and may I never cease to be thankful.

The Way Things Are

May I always be content and never overrun by my emotions. I am thankful for the relationships I have and may I never try to force them into something they are not. They are beautiful as they truly are and need no mending. May I let them run their natural course. Thank you for being there for me and may I never take you for granted.

My Days

I am truly thankful for these days I have to live. Each moment and each day truly is a gift. To not enjoy every minute of our lives is to be blind. To take a breath and not feel life itself is to ignore the truth: life is beautiful. We are beautiful. There are hard times; times when all we see is darkness. But they will pass. Slowly but surely, they will pass. We must only hang on, knowing, trusting that life will reveal itself through goodness; that these trials are only proceeded by life's true blessings; that they are mere clouds passing on a sunny day. So keep your eyes on the sky. It's a beautiful day out.

This Air

Thank you for feeding my body. Thank you for filling my lungs. Thank you for providing a breeze on a hot day. Thank you for allowing planes to float gently upon you. Thank you for carrying our voices. Thank you for being you. Thank you for being. May I breathe a little deeper.

My Joints

I am thankful for the mobility they give my body. They enable me to walk, play guitar, eat, shake hands, move. They make all my daily activities possible. So thank you, joints. Thank you for making me mobile. May you bend, rotate and swivel with ease. Keep it light.

Electricity

It powers the lamp that allows me to read what I'm writing. It powers the fan that cools me and allows me to sleep. It powers my cell phone so I can talk to friends and loved ones when I call and listen when they do. It allows my food to be stored in the refrigerator. It powers these clocks; the t.v.; the remote control; my laptop that allows me to record music and write emails. The list is endless and it is all possible because electricity surges through these things and brings life to them. Thank you for lighting my way and keeping me cool.

Bananas

They are the perfect fruit, wrapped especially for me. They provide energy for me. They give my body sustenance. They can power me through a workout. They give me energy so that I may use my body and experience everything it has to offer. They are cheap. They are delicious. They are abundant. What a beautiful fruit and a beautiful thing for them to exist. Thank you, Mother Nature. Thank you.

A Friend

I am thankful for my friend. She is a smart and capable person and I know she'll do well in anything she goes for. I am thankful for our conversations. I love talking to her and it helps me stay grounded while I could easily be swept away in this new city. I am glad things are going so well for her in her internship and all of her prospective internships. She is a good friend and I am thankful to be part of her life. May only good things find her and when the bad does, may she overcome it with ease and optimism. May her life be filled with love and contentment and may I only contribute positively to it. Be strong. Be healthy. And thank you.

Rest

You give me time to recuperate and to collect my thoughts. You give me more energy and help me perform better in all aspects of life. Thank you and may we all take it easy.