I feel like there's something wrong with me; the premise of Ann Voskamp's One Thousand Gifts is so…well…me. It's my nature to be grateful for simple things, to notice the beauty of the ordinary and every day.
But I can't seem to finish her book…
and I haven't yet cultivated the habit of journaling gratitude.
Ann opens her veins and bleeds painstaking beauty in One Thousand Gifts. It's spiritual and mental feast, meaty and rich and delicious…but difficult for me to digest. Am I the only one? Maybe I'm spending too much time ruminating over thoughts cast in new light, maybe I'm making the simple too hard.
Thanksgiving, joy, grace–should pursuit and practice be such a challenge? Then again, there is a learned aspect to all of this. Gratitude comes easily when good things happen, but it takes intention to be thankful when life takes turn unexpected.
Today I'm not giving into defeat; in spite of my inconsistency and lack of discipline in journaling my own 1,000 Gifts, I'll pick up where I left off, and this time remember and share a glimpse of the easiest things to celebrate ~ moments from our beach vacation.
6. Blue skies (almost) and rainbows you can touch.
7. Sand in my shoes.
8. A room with spectacular view.
9. Crashing waves, thunderous applause for their Creator.
10. Invisible loggerhead turtle nests.
11. Spectacular sky shows morning and evening.
12. Happy feet.
13. Cousins working hard. Cousins playing hard.
14. The best buried treasure of them all.
15. Palmetto trees.
16. Fascinating sea creatures, ordinarily taken for granted (or depised!).
17. Tan lines.
18. Beach walks, beach talks.
19. Gulls who dance with the wind.
20. My boys…and the staff member who captured an image of us on the way out of town :).
21. A perfect reading spot.
I wish I was on that beach right now! I would feel very blessed to be there:)
Thank you for coming over to my place. I always appreciate another momma’s heart:)
Kris
I have read her book all the way through..and like you I normally always look for the gift in things..but writing it down, making a record for generations to come…still alludes me, I have tried once or twice and am actually going to try a third time this summer! But photos are a great record too!!
Robin!!! I think we were sisters in another life. I love where you are right now (you know that) . . . both physically (jealous!) but also mentally with Ann’s book. I am in the same place! About halfway through, and I love it every time I pick it up, but it seems so laborious to read to me. I think because I need to mull over every word, it’s so rich.
Also, I got caught up in doing a 31 Day series on my blog last month, so I put aside my Monday morning Gratitude Journal. I’m with you . . . just pick it up again and don’t look back. I still haven’t blogged today, but maybe I’ll do that later.
Have fun at the beach!!!
Oh my goodness… these photos are amazing! What a beautiful day at the beach! I have read Ann’s book. Love it. But decided early on that I just needed to read it and not spend a huge amount of time ‘figuring everything out’ right away. I will read it again and I know I will get more and more out of it. I knew I could end up making the simple too hard! 🙂 Great list of gifts Robin!
I just finished her book. It took me about 8 weeks to read it and I READ EVERYDAY!!!! I think I read, like, a paragraph a day or something. So much to chew on. I think I put pressure on myself that my gratitude ought to be eloquent. I don’t suppose God cares so much about my eloquence…just my sincerity. Her book did, however, become a “sweet friend” over those 8 weeks and I am sad it’s over.
Thanks for stopping by. I so enjoyed your pictures. It’s been a long, cold “winter” and I’m ready for some sun like that. Ann’s book has truly blessed me because I’m not one to stop and enjoy the moment. I love what another blogger wrote, “The days are long and the years are short.” The first time I read her book I just read cover to cover, then I went back through and marked it up and now I’m going back through again and have stopped where she said she had already gotten to 1,000. I (and more importantly my family) have seen a difference in my attitude since writing things down.
Oh, such evocative pictures! I, too, am doing a photo log for my gratitude record. And I, too, have struggled with this whole process as thankfulness has always been such a huge piece of my own spiritual journey. And the idea of carrying a notebook around just hasn’t captured me….yet. And you are not alone in struggling with the book itself, either. I read it all the way through with the book club over at Incourage, but I wrestled hard with some of what she said. I have LOVED her blog for a long time; the book was more difficult for me. And I finally figured out part of the reason for that: on her blog, she fills each day with photos….and there are no photos in this book. And it is the visuals that help me to wrap my head around her very poetic writing style. So..the photo log is working fairly well for me – and I, too, posted my 2nd edition this week. Thanks for your lovely list today – there is nothing quite like a beach vacation, is there??
Kristin, I’m really trying to visit those before and after me in a link list, to help encourage the community :). Thanks for the return visit!!
Jean, words AND pictures make the best journals, don’t cha think??
Shelly, Confession: I do NOT blog/FB/tweet that I’m out of town WHEN I’m out of town anymore; I wrote this after we had returned home! And this was at Ponte Vedra, not our beloved Kiawah Island (a first visit). It was wonderful because we were ocean front (a first!) but I missed those wonderful live oaks…
Jennifer, it’s almost like I inhale Ann’s words then hold my breath; I just wanna retain all I can :).
Alisa, what a wonderful way to describe any book, “a sweet friend.” I KNOW that would count as a gift back to Ann, to know you characterized it that way :).
Cari, how much do I love YOUR FAMILY has noticed a change in attitude!?? A lot! THAT is the evidence of the Spirit’s work in you; true transformation :).
Diana, brilliant that you figured out the disconnect between Ann’s book and her blog! I know she’d never want listing to be burdensome; and I go back to the premise of needing to LEARN to be thankful. It demands practice (in some cases). 🙂
i think ann’s book is one to be savored rather than gulped. i’ve given it to so many people and i always warn them… it’s more like poetry than conversation. but the truth in it stays with you like lyrics of songs…
Hey,
It is really a wonderful post from you.I really liked it very much.These are some wonderful photographs you are sharing with us.Thanks!
I haven’t even bought Ann’s book for all the reasons people mentioned above. Her language is beautiful but more than I can take in right now. But that’s ok.