Holidays with gratitude

With the holidays on the horizon, the following comments from "Attitudes of Gratitude" by M.J. Ryan seemed appropriate:

Recently I took my one-year-old daughter to the zoo for the first time. Her eyes almost popped out of her head when she saw an elephant. And when I gave her her first scoop of ice cream, her joy knew no bounds. Her little body wriggled, her eyes sparkled, and she brought out the biggest smile.

The truth is, elephants are amazing creatures, and ice cream is just as delicious the one-thousanth time as the first. But we adults have lost our wonderment, and so we can't appreciate elephants and ice cream as much.

In wonderment, children are our greatest teachers. Wonder is a natural state, one that we often lose track of as we become numb to life. We need to let life surprise us, with a glorious sunset, a luxurious back rub, or the kindness of a stranger.

We can touch wonder in every moment as we slow down and perceive the world around us as if for the first time. And when we contact wonder, we know thankfulness for the most ordinary, extraordinary things of life.