“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.” – Melody Beattie
“Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgiving, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings.” – William Arthur Ward
“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.” – John F. Kennedy
Grateful for our Unusual Oasis
Each of us find joy in many things, yet we so rarely verbalize our gratitude. Maybe the COVID-19 pandemic is giving me cause to be more reflective or it could be age. I see things differently and know to give thanks. Now I look closely and see the importance of moments that impact me as a woman, wife, mom, working mother, daughter, sister, aunt and fellow human being. I have points of view from my different perspectives and I’m filled with gratitude for my experiences.
As my thoughts and perspectives converge, I see the simple experiences and interactions mean the most. I’m so grateful for these heart warming moments I now cherish. Stolen glimpses of heaven on earth.
Gratitude goes beyond the ‘mine’ and ‘thine’ and claims the truth that all of life is a pure gift. In the past I always thought of gratitude as a spontaneous response to the awareness of gifts received, but now I realize that gratitude can also be lived as a discipline. The discipline of gratitude is the explicit effort to acknowledge that all I am and have is given to me as a gift of love, a gift to be celebrated with joy. – Henri J.M. Nouwen
As of late, I’ve been reminiscing with family and friends. This brought to light how lucky my family is to have our own oasis and thus this feeling of gratitude. Our oasis may be unusual, but it certainly has provided and continues to provide us with many of our most treasured memories and moments.
Our Oasis Comes to Being
Funny, this all came about on a whim. My husband and I made a quick decision. We decided to extend the driveway to include the grassy area to the right of our fenced in yard. I’m grateful for this perfect decision.
With much gratitude, I can say, this paved area is the equivalent of my Brooklyn, New York stoop; the place where I played stoop ball, met our neighbors or waited for the ice-cream man. To my children and husband it is just a place to enjoy some free time and relax. This is fine, it should be this way for them.
Grateful for Oasis Adventures
Our oasis is our place for doing all sorts of things. Over ten plus years, our oasis has been used to draw with chalk, chase lightening bugs, ride bikes, scooters, jump rope, play volleyball, basketball, badminton, Simon Says, read books, have beach days, eat ice pops, wash cars or just sit and enjoy family discussions.
We had our daughter’s first art show here and used the area for many lemonade and garage sales.
This is our safe place for trying new things and learning skills. The family discussions here are the best. Who would have thought by chance we would have found a creative spot for our family discussions. What better way to touch each other with words than when we’re relaxed with our guards down. Then we speak from the soul.
So many beautiful experiences have taken place here. This is where my older daughter learned how to ride her bike without training wheels, my younger daughter experienced snow here for the first time. I want to savor these memories forever.
Yes, an unusual oasis, but perfect for bonding and seeing the simplistic events are sometimes the most significant. Now when I look out my window, I see a paved oasis with years of beautiful memories and I feel gratitude.