one minute of grateful

Every morning, I get into the shower and when I step under the water for the first time, I think “you’re so lucky, so incredibly lucky.” I have clean, hot water – all I want, whenever I want. I can splash like a bird in more water than some people see in a year. I live indoors and I have heat and air conditioning and plenty of food. I’m lucky. So stinkin’ lucky. It’s just random luck, after all, that I enjoy such luxuries. I am not, in any way, more deserving than those who do not have these things. It’s just the luck of geography, the luck of economy, just plain dumb luck.

For nearly a minute, I’m grateful. I’m in awe of how much I have and how much I take for granted. There is a minute of clarity. Then I scrub myself clean and that feeling of being downright amazed at how lucky I am gets washed down the drain somehow. The rest of the day is consumed by challenges and tasks – the busy work of life. There’s no time to reflect on sheer luck, no time for gratitude.

One minute a day. It’s not enough, but it’s a start.