Attitude of Gratitude

Today, the 4th of July is a great day to celebrate and to show your gratitude to our nation’s founding fathers, and all of the men and women who have served our nation to protect our freedom.

I think we take a lot of what we have in the United States for granted. Our Constitution gives us so many rights to be free. I really like the phrase “…life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

Through my scouting career, I have taken part of many ceremonies in regards to our countries traditions and codes. One particular ceremony that I have witnessed time after time is the US flag retirement ceremony. The scouts are one of three organizations approved by the Congress to perform flag disposal/retirement ceremonies. During these ceremonies, there is such a patriotic energy that comes over the participants. When the ceremony is all over and the fire has burned itself completely out, the ashes are filtered for the grommets from the retired flags. These grommets are then given to selected patriots as a gratitude gift.

The Attitude of Gratitude goes well beyond the Boy Scouts and being grateful for a free country. It goes into everyday life. We need to be grateful or thankful for the things we have. When something doesn’t go right or in your favor, you need to stop and be thankful for what is going well. For example, my dog is over 14 years old and she is very sick this past weekend. I do believe we will need to put her down very soon. I am sad that she won’t be a part of our lives; however, I am so thankful that she has given us so much over the last 14 plus years. There is always something to thankful for.

Do you have something that is bothering you or isn’t going well? Sure you do, everyone does. Don’t ponder on the bad, let’s look at the good stuff and be thankful for that. Can’t think of anything? Think a little longer, there is something…the birds, the flowers, the lake…it is simple to be thankful for something.

Challenge yourself to have an Attitude of Gratitude this coming week.

Thank you for reading my blog…lead by example,

Scouter Steve