Most mornings, I make a gratitude list on a watercolor background. A few examples of early and recent lists are in the gallery below. I started this process almost two years ago. I participated in a November gratitude list project started by Tammi Salas and I was hooked. I noticed that my life got better simply by acknowledging how good it is. Not everything on the list is earth shattering. Sometimes the farmer’s market and coffee make the list. Usually my sobriety and my kids make the list. It’s not a complete list on any occasion, but rather a peek into what is bringing me joy or progress or challenges at any given time.
Taking time each day to see my beautiful life and be thankful for it has changed my life. I encourage anyone to try it. I know that before I got sober, I would have found the whole thing to be outrageously corny. I was sucked in by the creative element. Gratitude lists can be typed on a keyboard, written on napkins, or just listed in your head, but for me, making it into art kept me faithful.
I learned to sew from my Grandma (still alive, 98 years old) when I was a little girl. Recently, I have been exploring stitching as an artistic and meditative process. I have a small quilt WIP that I will share when it is finished, and many embroidered and appliqued pieces. I decided to make an embroidered gratitude list. I put in some of my greatest hits, things that show up over and over in my daily lists, and I appliqued colorful fabric as a nod to my watercolor backgrounds.
