What began as a challenge proposed to me by a total stranger has become one of the most important activities I've ever partaken in.
"At the end of each day, reflect on three things you're grateful for and write them down."
When I first received this challenge, I brushed it off. I saw its delivery as merely another random part of another random speech given by another random faculty member. I didn't immediately see the value in it, so I wasn't ready to commit.
Yet, it triggered me. I began to consider all that I had in my life to be grateful for. The list started to lengthen rather quickly, but it was full of general stuff - family, school, God, friends, my car, my job. There didn't seem to be much substance to it, so I didn't see how writing about those things could be of much value - especially given my history with journaling.
Previously, I had tried using a journal that my parents had given me but gave up on it because I struggle to write "diary" entries. After a month of ownership, it had a single entry in it that was literally three pages of rambling about what I did that day. It seemed silly and wasteful, so I stopped using it.
For the next month or so, though, I kept looking at this practically unused journal. I knew that it could have great value if I used it properly, but I couldn't bring myself to actually write in it. Until eventually, I got to the point where I knew it needed to be used and took the challenge.
The first night I recorded my thoughts, I decided I wanted it to be more than a list - I wanted it to have meaning. So, not only did I write what I was thankful for, but why I was thankful for it. I picked three aspects of my day that I felt deserved recognition, and wrote about why each one made me thankful. It was much easier to reflect using this method of emphasizing a few important things, rather than trying to include everything I did that day.
However, I didn't write again for two weeks. What I thought would become a regular nightly reflection, almost ended after one night. But I came back to it because I knew it made a difference. Even after one instance, I was more aware of how the small, often unnoticed things in my life were really the most important. It was the realization that has pushed me to continue this trend for the last eight months.
Though it's been on and off (I haven't been able to write for more than four consecutive nights), journaling my thoughts in this way has been life-changing. Each time I write, I'm reminded of at least three reasons why every day is worth living. I've literally written about everything from a hug I received to completing my freshman year of college. I've realized there's nothing too small or too big to be thankful for.
It's because of this that I want to propose the same challenge to you. For the next week, take ten minutes before you go to bed to record three things that you are thankful for from that day. If you're feeling up to it, even include why you're thankful for those things. This type of reflection has the power to change the way you see each day. Will you take the challenge?
