25 Things You Can Learn from a Meerkat
This is not about office cubicle etiquette
Meerkat Wisdom:
Periodically, lift up your head from the whirlwind of day-to-day living, stand on your tiptoes and take stock; of what’s going on around you and to consider your forward strategy. Otherwise you might accidentally look up one day and five (or more) years of your life will have, unnoticed, flashed by.
Is gratitude overrated? It’s everywhere. “Practice Gratitude as the key to happiness and the universe.” It’s so prevalent, it’s being merchandised. Not only is there the attitude of gratitude, there are gratitude journals, gratitude rocks, gratitude necklaces, gifts boxes, meditation series, even massage oil.
But I’m here to tell you — it’s not overrated, not even close, exploitative products notwithstanding. As 2018 comes to a close, I have what feels far more than 365 days to look back over and consider; it felt like dog years. As a Bahá’í, the usual time to practice this look-back is in February/March with Ayyám-i-Há and the month of Fasting. I’m jumping the gun a bit; November appeared to bring a significant shift I’ve been pondering for about 3 weeks.
Here are some of the things that took place in 2018 for which I am crazy thankful for:
1. I bought a townhouse after 6 years of renting (with the BEST realtor ever!)
2. Because it’s a townhouse I don’t have to mow the lawn
3. There’s a trashcan fairy in my new neighborhood
4. My beautiful, amazing, resilient daughter completed a year of homeschooling and returned to high school
5. She also got to go to prom
6. All of the therapy, talking, journaling, friends, crying and grit it took to be the mom of an anxious daughter
7. Discovered the tranquility of swimming laps at the Y (after years of fear of water)
8. Harper (Harley’s niece), the 3lb. curly Maltipoo joined our family
9. My brilliant, adorable, persistent younger son completed his transfer courses at the community college, got into the local 4-year state college and moved into his own place
10. Celebrated the one-year anniversary of my Dad moving around the corner, after 82 years in California, and reestablishing our relationship with love and forgiveness
11. Having my best friend home from China after 14 years!
12. Partnered to make 37 micro-loans to women in Mozambique through Kiva. org
13. Still employed (3 years at the same place in October) as a telecommuter so I can be a support to my daughter
14. Enjoyed 3 Broadway plays (locally) and 5 symphony performances, even though after being 49,309th in line for Hamilton tickets, decided not to spend the money
15. Dated a kind man who taught me about healthy boundaries
16. Threw my daughter a birthday party with the theme of ‘The Office’, even though she didn’t want one
17. Celebrated the twin birthdays of my daughter and her cousin together with a big family dinner
18. Got back to writing and publishing on Medium.com and finished my story series on Bernard (shameless plug)
19. Hosting dear friends we met (& lived with) in India and their adorable kids in November (after not seeing J&S for 9 years!)
20. Discovered Malcolm Gladwell’s’ podcast, Revisionist History and binged the entire series of The West Wing (which I’d never seen) as an antidote to the current 3-ring circus we seem to be living though
21. With 2 friends, forming a US-based sister non-profit to Two Billion Eyes Foundation, a Bahá’í-inspired social and economic development program providing glasses to the 1 Billion people who live with uncorrected vision
22. Took on Dave Ramsey’s Total Money Makeover and paid off $21,000 of debt
23. My zany, provocative, dedicated, supportive, always-my-champion sister
24. Hosted Thanksgiving in my new townhouse
25. And last but not least: my kind, insightful, exceptional eldest son married his high school sweetheart (a fabulous woman in her own right), seven years nearly to the day they started dating
There are more, but one has to draw the line somewhere. I will add the wedding meant I got to visit with old friends, enjoy current friends and make some new ones from my new daughter-in-laws’s family. I love my new in-laws and am especially grateful they have been so welcoming.
“Gratitude is the ability to recognize the extremely unlikely nature of your current circumstances.”
– Ramin Nazer
May 2019 be a year of kindness, abundance, discovery and gratitude for you and your loved ones.
