The mind can be imagined as a garden with seeds that are cultivated with our attention. Attention becomes like water and sunlight, bringing a seed to grow and bloom. A mind’s garden is complex and often unruly because of the large number and wide variety of seeds. For example, seeds of hostility, resentment and greed can be mixed in with seeds of compassion, generosity, and peace. What seeds do we want to cultivate? What seeds support stability and wisdom, especially in times of great challenges and losses? It can be so easy to feel overwhelmed by the negative news these days: the political polarization, the adverse effects of the changing climate, the wars. Add to that the many challenges that come with a cancer diagnosis and treatment, it’s a testament to our resilience and courage that we don’t spend the day in bed with the covers over our heads!
One seed that supports the experience of stability is the seed of gratitude. When I experience gratitude, a stream of people, experiences, places and nature’s wonders flow through my heart and mind. I am grateful I can read and write. I am grateful for the chair I’m sitting on, the warm cup of chai I’m sipping and the fleece-lined shirt I’m wearing. I am grateful for the food in the fridge, my amazing healthcare team, a supportive husband and community of friends. I am grateful for oxygen, water, the warmth of the sun, and this beautiful earth. The list is endless. I am reminded how we can have conditions for contentment and happiness right in front of us, however the mind easily slides into what’s wrong and lacking, overlooking what is good and nourishing.
Gratitude offers the opportunity to recognize and take in the good and expand our awareness to adopt a broader perspective. There is always some good to be found somewhere. I am reminded of a story told by a Zen meditation teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh. Living in Vietnam during the war, he described, sitting in meditation and recalling the children and the plants he so loved, filling his heart with their beauty and goodness. He discussed how this practice was essential to supporting his stability and clarity of mind during the war. If he can do this in the middle of a war zone, I can practice gratitude here.
I’ve been examining what gratitude really feels like. Gratitude draws my awareness beyond of myself. I connect with my primary school teachers who taught me to read and write, the people who produce the ingredients for chai tea I love and the designers of this favorite shirt I’m wearing. I link to those who grew and brought the food in my fridge to a grocery store. I am in awe of my healthcare team and everyone who supported them to become the caring, capable providers who are helping extend my life. I appreciate my interconnectedness with family, friends and the world around me.
My mind grows more open and spacious and my heart warms. This more open and spacious heart and mind is calming and a welcome alternative to being physically and emotionally closed, contracted and isolated. The experience of connectedness brings comfort, contentment and even joy. Bringing attention the seed gratitude acknowledges the goodness in the world and that I am the recipient of the goodness of countless connections. Cultivating the seed of gratitude supports perspective and ease, even in difficult times.