Appreciation changes how we experience our world and ourselves in the world, setting us up to attract more to appreciate. Start with the things to appreciate that are right in front of you, at your fingertips—like running water or, better yet, warm running water. Give thanks to the Universe and the city and county water department each time you turn on the faucet and receive hot water. Water is a First World luxury we take for granted on a planet where many people don’t have access to drinkable water, let alone running hot water. Again, appreciating hot water is not about being a good person or being thankful for having something that lesser-blessed people do not. These are noble ideas but not what we’re aiming for here. We give thanks of appreciation because, in doing so, we are connecting with and acknowledging a most abundant and generous Universe. In this, we are again holding ourselves accountable for respecting and honoring what we have and, by proxy, intending it for everyone. Nurturing our humanity is an inside job, starting at home and expanding outward.
Going one step further, if you have access to a washing machine and a dryer in your home, give thanks as you transfer each load from one to the other. I remind myself regularly how, in a past life, I had to drag baskets of laundry down to the riverside and beat my clothes on rocks to get the stains out. Today, I get to apply stain remover, push a button, and go for a latte while the machine does the work. A big heartfelt “thank you” to Jacob Christian Schaffer of Germany, credited with the 1767 design, and all those who followed in the development of the electric washer and dryer.
