Balcony Girls Learn a Lesson on Gratitude

A couple of years back, my Balcony Girls and I met for an afternoon full of excitement and anticipation as we came together to learn a lesson on gratitude.

Gratitude: A feeling of being grateful or thankful. It comes from being content and it comes from our hearts.

Balcony Girls is a group of girls I meet with to discuss relationships. Girl relationships. How to build one another up. And the lesson this day may seem like a simple task, but to a young girl, learning how to write a thank you note ties in well with a thankful heart.

Keeping gratitude in mind, how do you pen your thoughts to someone, thanking them for a kind act or a gift?

My friend, who did the lesson with me on this day, read from an old etiquette book examples of how, many years ago, people would write long thank you notes, which were quite detailed.

It seems like sometimes we go for days without saying, “thank you.” 

When we lose the ability to say “thanks,” we start to get self- centered and “me” oriented. That is a sad state to be in, I told the girls.

When we neglect to say “thank you” (or express appreciation), is it because we are afraid that someone else is somehow better than us?  And we are less?

Or is it FEAR (false evidence appearing real), or insecurity or competitiveness that has gotten in the way? (Very common with girls!) Or is it sheer thoughtlessness, that we don’t think of how a person sacrificed or put out for us enough to be grateful to them for their effort?

Saying, “thank you” makes the other person feel special and spreads love. It also increases the chance that that person will want to do more good!

It’s give and take – appreciation and giving thanks. 

There’s no competition involved!! When you put a lot of time and love into a gift, and you're not validated in return with a “thank you,” it makes you not want to send a gift to that person again!

After the girls had their snack of mini hamburgers, chips and juice, I shared with them a little secret of what I often do when I lie in bed and can’t go to sleep! I pray, and then I start making a list in my head for things that I am grateful for. And people I am thankful for. 

Instead of complaining about what I don’t have, I’m thankful for what I do have!

Life does not owe us personal fulfillment, happiness or contentment. These are the results of gratitude. It all starts with appreciating what we have.

The obvious things we are thankful for are what we have (home, food, family) and what others do for us (trips, laundry, gifts, care)! But for Balcony Girls who are focusing on friendships, what about being thankful for support, encouragement, trust, and being able to share with one another?

Ending with this very mature way of looking at gratitude, I am hoping that the girls will grasp this concept and be able to take gratitude one step further (outside of themselves - it’s not always about me!).

I hope that they will also learn to take the opportunity to help the less fortunate, whether with health, financial or social needs – and find that it is a privilege to share the burdens or pains of others.

I was so grateful to my friend who opened her home, who shared food and time with us, such beautiful acts of kindness. Her willingness to help me out was a huge gift.

Yes, an attitude of gratitude was instilled in our hearts, a perfect lesson for this Thanksgiving season.

Gratitude does not end with our private thanks to God, but overflows to those who touch our lives.