A Year of Gratitude – March 23, 2024

I thought that my gratitude was for a cookie today. To be fair, it is a very good cookie. Chocolatey, lightly crisp on the exterior, and fudgy on the inside. With my afternoon cup of coffee, it was the highlight of my day.

Deep down, it wasn’t the cookie I was grateful for. At least it wasn’t solely the cookie that I was grateful for. Mostly, I was grateful for a mom who always does what she can to brighten my day, who never asks why I need comfort. She just knows that comfort is needed and springs into action.

When it comes to parents, I’ve been so lucky. I was blessed by birth with parents who loved me and who made sure that I knew that. I can honestly say that I never once doubted it, I never had to. While I didn’t fully appreciate how rare and wonderful that was when I was a child. I certainly do now.

I’ve tried my best to give that same gift to my children. I am so lucky to spend this era of my life with both my children and my parents living here at the farmhouse with me. On days when the world seems unkind, they surround me with kindness, they give me innumerable reasons to remember that there are glimmers of brightness and beauty all around me. It is with their help that I find them.

My mom knew that I needed one of those reminders today, that I could use some comfort and a little something to swing this day from the difficult side of the pendulum towards the middle. She also knew that chocolate would help to do just that.

I know that food isn’t a universal comfort for everyone. For me, it is an intricate part of my love language. I cook and bake for the people I love to celebrate, to mourn, to nourish back to health, and to provide comfort. It’s so nice to receive that same sort of love from them in return.

These chocolate cookies did lift my spirits a bit. Mostly, they reminded me of how lucky I am to spend my days with the people I love and who love me right back. It’s the most amazing reason I can think of to be filled with warm gratitude.

This post is part of our A Year of Gratitude Series. You can find the introduction, inspiration, and entire year’s gratitude’s posts here.