A Simple Act of Gratitude

The January 1st issue of Parade Magazine featured an article by John Kralik, author of A Simple Act of Gratitude: How Learning to Say Thank You Changed My Life. He tells how in 2008, he made a decision to do a year of "thank-yous" - to write notes to all sorts of people who had helped him in one way or another.

He writes, "This project transformed my life. I saw how much I had been blessed by so many people in different ways, and acknowledging their blessings seemed to make them multiply. After I thanked colleagues for directing cases to me, they referred more. When I expressed gratitude to clients for paying promptly, they began doing so even more quickly.

"Something more subtle occurred, too. With my thank-you notes, I was trying to tell people how much their kindness meant to me. As they responded, that same message was reflected back."

He then went on to write A Simple Act of Gratitude: How Learning to Say Thank You Changed My Life about the experience.

I put aside the article, planning to write about this week (and so I am!) because I thought it was a wonderful idea. But, then, as if to emphasize the point, I'm pretty sure I became a recipient of one of these letters! On New Year's Day, an old acquaintance from high school wrote me to tell me how much she enjoyed my columns at Catholic Mom and that she had also found my book Letters to Mary from a Young Mother (now available in Kindle format as well) very helpful now that she was the mother of a fourteen month old. That letter totally made my day and I told her so!

So, take the time to thank someone today who has made a positive difference in your life - large or small. It could make a whole world of difference to them!