TOVO Tuesday 188

Giving Thanks

Thanksgiving is not an international holiday but expressing gratitude is universal.?

The interesting thing about the expression of gratitude is it benefits the very person doing so. Imagine a habit so simple leading to such benefits.?

Improved Mental Health

Expressing gratitude has been linked to reduced levels of anxiety and an increase of satisfaction with one's life.

Improved Physical Health

Expressing gratitude has been linked to improved sleep quality, lower blood pressure and stronger immune system functioning.?

Stronger Relationships

Gratitude strengthens social bonds by promoting feelings of trust and connection. Grateful individuals are perceived as kinder and more empathetic, further enhancing their social connections.?

Imagine someone gifts you a blue balloon. Each day you take a moment to breathe trust and kindness into it. From a lifeless piece of blue emerges a resilient azure globe. Connection in its expression is a miracle indeed.?

“Inspirare”: to blow into, to breathe?

Such is the power and opportunity we have. By expressing gratitude and nurturing the connection it affords we breathe life into our relationships. We breathe life into our own being. We live more robustly. We fill balloons and defy the gravity of our lives when times turn dour.?

Thursday will be a Day of Thanksgiving in my home nation. ?A feast with family and friends.

?Imagine if one day extended to another and the months and years became a festival galore. I wonder how many balloons would be enough to shelter us from the ills that weigh upon us. How many sincere notes of “Gracias”, “Merci”, “Dank je” or “Thank you” would be enough.?

“You cannot do a kindness too soon because you never know how soon it will be too late.”

R.W. Emerson?

Perhaps, I can start now with the first breath and see how life unfolds.?

Thank you.?Thank you for being part of our family of athletes, coaches and friends that care enough to say so. Care enough to believe in something larger than ourselves. Care enough to explore the universes stacked one upon another. Care about human potential in all its forms. Care enough to care enough.?

There are empty balloons everywhere. Just one breathe today and another perhaps tomorrow will breathe life into the possibility of you and the possibility of others who await you.?

Happy Thanksgiving.?