A little more to say on gratitude.

Last time I wrote about being a grateful blogger.

Sometimes gratitude comes fairly easily for me, and sometimes I have to work at it pretty hard. I have to work at getting out of my own way, looking repeatedly for guidance and connection that comes from way beyond me.

Twelve-step groups talk of an “attitude of gratitude”. I love that. Catchy and typically profound in its simplicity. Being grateful for all things; that can be quite a challenge, but God, what a powerful way to live.

One of my teachers is a remarkable young guy named James Keeley. At the ripe age of thirty-three or so he has tremendous wisdom, vision and presence. He is able to tune in deeply to his deep Self and live from this place and guide others. He is partners in a business called Lionheart Consulting.

In his short yet powerful book “Walking with God”, he talks of being grateful for the “good” things that happen in our lives while also turning gratefully for deep guidance when not-so-pleasant things take place. And the not-so-pleasant things are typically what bring us to the brink of our greatest growth, so being grateful for everything doesn’t have to be a trite mouthful of castor oil. James is able to transmit deep feeling and presence through his writing, and certainly in person. And I know he does quite a job of living from this place himself.

I just started writing my first e-booklet, aimed at property owners looking for guidance in navigating the often daunting waters of trusting themselves in the hands of designers and contractors, and everything that goes with that territory. With a timely bit of real good advice from Sean D’Souza I sat down and started into the seemingly large task one bite at a time and quickly produced the first two pages of draft. Thanks, Sean, and thanks to others who have been a big support; Dawud, Daniel, Bonnie, Dave, James, Ibrahim, Manijeh, Barry, and more. Again the gratitude.

Without planning to go there, I found myself recounting the story of working with one customer, in the beginnings of my e-booklet. And as I was writing, I realized that I was grateful for her and for that project. She and I both pushed some personal envelopes in a big way while planning and building, and we forged a real working alliance between builder and customer. Then the project made its way into a featured article in “Fine Homebuilding” magazine, pushing more boundaries.

As I look back on my construction career I can definitely say that I am grateful for my customers and projects and all the learning and growing they brought with them. I am grateful to the Creator for placing both the people and the work in front of me and grateful for the urges in me to always want to connect with my customers and associates at as good a heart level as we could.

And, truth be told, I know that many of my customers are grateful for me, too. I still work with several of them on a repeated basis. I value them, and I try to serve them well.

What are you grateful for? I would love to hear.