Growing up, I knew a woman who had lost much of he...

Growing up, I knew a woman who had lost much of her mobility to polio. She needed crutches to walk and hobbled about, swinging her legs out wide with every step.

Her husband didn’t appreciate her, and neither did her three sons. Still, she worked tirelessly to provide a warm and welcoming home. She did the shopping, the cooking, and cleaning, and still found time to do good things for others.

I never told her how much I admired her until I moved away. Then, late one night in a bipolar frenzy, I poured out my heart to her in a letter. What I never expected was my letter became one of her most prized possessions. For the first time in years, she felt seen, and she repeated her gratitude to me every time I saw her after that.

Gratitude is a gift. It’s one of my favorite things to write about because practicing gratitude improves lives. I wrote to my friend because I was grateful for the example she set. Her perseverance in the face of all her struggles made me believe I could follow her lead and overcome anything. Her gratitude for the letter filled her with joy.

Gratitude won’t cure your mental illness, but it will change your focus. When you change your focal point, your entire life changes. If you appreciate the things you have rather than thinking of the things you don’t, you realize how many blessings you possess.

I recommend keeping a gratitude jar. Try to add three things you are thankful for each day. When you’re having a tough day, remind yourself of all of your reasons to live by looking at your gratitude collection.

For today, focus on the one thing that makes you the most grateful. It could be a person, event, object, or anything else. Let that reason be your positive energy source for your day.

Until next time, keep fighting.
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