“Wear gratitude like a cloak, and it will feed every corner of your life.”
Rumi
SL Journal · Connection · Gratitude
A Simple Gratitude
Practice for Autumn
Three things. Once a day.
Autumn has a natural way of drawing us inward.
The days become shorter, the pace begins to change and, as we move towards the final months of the year, it can be a lovely moment to take stock.
Not of what we have achieved, what still needs doing or what we would like to change, but simply of what we already have.
Gratitude is one of those words that has become deeply woven into the language of wellness. We are told to keep gratitude journals, write lists and remind ourselves to be thankful. Yet at its heart, the practice is much simpler than that.
It is about paying attention.
Our minds are remarkably good at noticing what is missing, what needs fixing and what might go wrong. Meanwhile, much of what is good in our lives can quietly become part of the background.
The person who makes us a cup of tea. A body that carries us through the day. A message from an old friend. A good night’s sleep. A beautiful view. Someone making us laugh. The luxury of having a little time to ourselves.
None of these things needs to be extraordinary to be worthy of our attention.
And gratitude doesn’t require us to pretend that everything is wonderful. Difficult things can be difficult. We can feel tired, frustrated or uncertain and still recognise something good alongside them. The two can exist together.
Perhaps that is what makes gratitude such a useful practice. It gently shifts our attention without asking us to deny how we really feel.
A simple autumn gratitude practice
Once a day, pause and write down three things:
Something I have
Something already present in my life that I am grateful for.
Something I experienced
A moment from today that I am glad I noticed.
Someone I appreciate
A person who made my day, my week or my life a little better.
Then choose one and ask:
Have I properly acknowledged this?
Perhaps that means sending the message. Saying thank you. Lingering over the moment rather than rushing into the next one. Or simply allowing yourself a few seconds to recognise how fortunate you feel.
Over time, the practice isn’t really about creating a longer gratitude list. It is about becoming better at noticing.
At Silver Linings, Connection is one of our five pillars of wellbeing, and gratitude can be a particularly beautiful expression of it. It reconnects us with ourselves, with other people and with the small details of our lives that we can so easily take for granted.
So, this autumn, rather than adding another complicated wellness ritual to your routine, try something very simple.
Three things.
Once a day.
Notice them. Appreciate them. And, whenever you can, say thank you.
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