Gratitude Week at Cooking Up Kefi

Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world*, I think of all the things I am thankful for.  With 2012 drawing near and the news growing ever more doom-and-gloom, this can be easier said than done.

I worry, sometimes, that showing thanks is something we do only when were prompted to-- during those last few minutes of yoga, as we walk out of stores,  or while our parents are watching-- but not something most of us do because we're actually, you know, thankful.  The number of times I see people interact with other humans--in settings from cafes to hospitals--without expressing even a morsel of gratitude is troubling.  And let me tell you--if we're not thanking the people who keep us caffeinated and handle our body fluids, then times are tougher than even Lou Dobbs could have thought.


It's more than just transactional thanks that have gone away--we seem to have lost a feeling of gratefulness.  Were it not for Turkey Day every November, I wonder how many of us would take even one pass around a dinner table to list just one thing we're grateful for.  Even Thanksgiving has become, ironically, an opportunity to identify things we are decidedly NOT thankful for: the traffic we're forced to endure to travel to our family, the pounds we will undoubtedly pack on from the excess of food cooked for and served to us, the stress of dealing with people who, for better or worse, know us intimately enough to push our buttons.  If I were learning English in America right now, I might get the feeling that "thanks" meant any number of things other than "I am grateful you just did that."  We use the word to say "I know you'll do this for me" (as in: "Can you be sure this gets done today? Thanks."), to end conversations ("OK great, thanks."), to make snarky social media statements ("#thankssomuch"), and as a closing to annoying emails so overpunctuated we can't even spell the whole damn word out ("THNX GUYS!!!!!!!!") --but how often do we just express a good ol' plainjane, "thanks"?

On my less cynical days, I can believe that we haven't, in fact, lost the feeling of gratitude--we've just gotten to be very bad at showing it.  And for that reason, I bring to you: Gratitude Week (da da da dahhhhh!) Nothing fancy--just a chance for me to share some of the things that I am grateful for (big and small). And, hopefully, a chance for all 4 of my readers to share, too--because I'm tired of feeling like I'm talking to myself (big shout out to Jillian, who increased by readership by 33%!).

So--this week I'll be writing about the things I'm grateful for: running, cooking, family, finding a calling, and making a difference (among other things).  What are you thankful for? Tell me in the comments!

*Eternal gratitude to Hugh Grant and everyone associated with Love Actually, an instant Kefi family holiday classic