Gratitude Girl

On this last Wednesday of 2023, I write my last gratitude post on this blog.  In 2024, I will be writing daily in my new gratitude journal. Today, I'm grateful for all the ups and downs of this year. I'm also grateful for all those who visited this blog regularly over the last few years. Thank you! Love, Gratitude Girl

I'm grateful for all the daily miracles...like sunrise and sunset...and my dogs' soft inhale and exhale as I watch them sleep. I'm also grateful for the less frequent miracles I get to encounter...like cutting a papaya open to find its seeds have sprouted inside it.

I'm grateful for the time I got to spend with the people I love, especially those who are no longer alive. I'm grateful for all the memories we created together, memories I will cherish forever.

Today I'm grateful for opening my eyes in the morning, for inhaling and exhaling, for the delicious breakfast I ate, for the sun rays entering the room, for comfortably working on my upcoming book, ..., and for my dogs who have dragged my robe to their bed under my desk and are now snuggling.     

Thank you, Rumi, for "The Guest House": The English version starts at 5:37 of the video: https://youtu.be/4TFUghPHgjs

Today, the day before Thanksgiving, I'm grateful for all I have, and I'm even more grateful for all I don't have. 

Today I feel loved by a higher power, and I feel grateful... for being in the middle of nature: trees, clean air, etc.;  for my shelter, my cabin in the woods, and for having access to utilities; for my car, which allows me to drive out of the woods and into town when needed; for all the technology available to me: programs that are easy to use, especially those that are free; for online stores, which make living in the middle of nowhere easier; for the beautiful souls I've had the privilege to find in my life; for my boys, Hoppoo and Looloo, who give me so much love; and for Koochooloo whose presence I feel all the time even though she is no longer with me.

I'm grateful for every little thing that boosts my creativity: the ideas that come my way     when I walk or shower or lie in bed     or those that appear in my dreams, the good books I read    and the bad books I read, the interesting people I meet    and the people I don't get to meet, the support I get from friends    and harsh words from my not-so-supportive so-called friends, the thought-provoking films I watch    and the purely entertaining ones, and so many other sources. I'm grateful for all of it; It's all "big magic"!

November 1 is National Authors Day. I would like to express my appreciation for my favorite authors and their contributions. I would also like to dedicate this month to writing and editing and, hopefully, finishing several unfinished book projects. Many thanks to all writers, readers, and book lovers!

I'm grateful for the magnificent star we call the sun!  May I add a touch of cosmic elegance to it by calling it "Sol"? I'm grateful for Sol, and so are the dogs. Temperatures will drop here on Saturday... And winter will creep in. I'm enjoying the current weather. The dogs spend their days sunbathing on the freshly cut grass while I do my outside chores.

I'm grateful - for being hyper resilient  against naysayers and people with insecurities who try to pull others down to their level - for having confidence  to pursue what I believe in despite all the negativity - for being able to make decisions that serve the greater good - for being able to see  through people... their intentions... their agendas and last but not least - for all the people who appeared in my life to teach me these lessons the learning might have felt painful, but the lessons have made me the strong, confident, kind person I am today.

Following the letters written to fictional characters in the anthology Dearest Devised Darling , the fabulous anthology that was released just days ago, I'd like to write a letter to Pollyanna, the main character in the novel titled Pollyanna  written   by Eleanor H. Porter. Dearest Pollyanna, I learned about you only months ago while I was editing a book... I'm glad. I read your story... I'm glad. I learned that your name has become a word in the English language, one which Merriam-Webster defines as "a person characterized by irrepressible optimism and a tendency to find good in everything." I like the adjective that describes your kind of optimism... I'm glad. I used you as a model today when so many bad incidents happened, one after the other, and I managed to handle each with a positive attitude... I'm glad. Dearest Pollyanna, for all the good and all the bad... I'm glad. Gladly, Gratitude Girl

Today I'm grateful... for having had another birthday for being relatively healthy for my two dogs for the food I eat for my cabin for the sun for the clean air I breathe for those who support me for people showing me who they are for choosing peace, which comes with goodbyes and for today's rain.

Today I'm grateful for the opportunity to create the upcoming anthology. I appreciate every single contribution and the mind that wrote it. I hope to make the official announcement of its release in all formats by Wednesday, October 4, 2023.

“Piglet noticed that even though he had a Very Small Heart, it could hold a rather large amount of Gratitude.” A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh

I've been writing to fictional characters for a few months now. I just want to take one day off from the fictional world and express my gratitude for everything in my real world. There's so much to be grateful for... especially the events in my life that may appear as challenges. 

Working on the anthology...  You will soon receive an email message from Gratitude Girl.

About the anthology... Today, August 30, is the deadline for submissions.  I've read them all, so far, and the variety is fabulous! I'm grateful for the creative minds who wrote them. To all the participants, I say THANK YOU!

Anthology Submission Guidelines 1 - Each submission should be between 100 words and 300 words. 2 - The deadline for submission is August 30, 2023. I will not extend it. 3 - Each submission must include the full name of the character as indicated in the story and the full title of the book it came from.  4 - Pen names are allowed. This is important because writers often fall in love with their own characters, and I want these writers to freely introduce their characters to the world. 5 - All submissions must be copied and pasted into the email and submitted to gratigi21@gmail.com  with the subject line FICTIONAL CHARACTER. (Please don't send Google docs, Word documents, PDFs, etc.) 6 - I will not include any bios or links in the anthology, so whatever marketing contributors want to do, they must do in the writing of their piece.  7 - The approved submissions will be announced via email by September 10, 2023, and the book will be published in October 2023. 8 - There is no e...

Has a fictional character ever kept you company during a difficult time?  Have you ever fallen in love with a fictional character's physical or mental traits? Have you ever thought of a fictional character as your hero? Have you ever created a fictional character in your writing that you would want the world to know about? If the answer to any of the questions above is yes, write a letter of gratitude to that fictional character and submit it to the anthology in the works. Please find the details for this project here:  https://gratigi.blogspot.com/2023/08/submission-guidelines.html