On saying 'thankyou'

Do you ever say 'Thankyou' to yourself?  Are you ever grateful and compassionate to you? In this very brief discussion I look at the possibility that the answer to most of our woes is to focus on inner compassion, letting go of anguish beginning with the simple word 'Thankyou'. I am not talking about being over generous, greedy or even the word which is often used as a positive but I still view with suspicion namely pride.  Personally the flip side of pride is jealousy.  

We start, however,  with a radio show ( I think radio 2)  I was listening  to.  On the show  Archbishop of York (Dr John Sentamu)  was discussing how he approaches the beginning of  each new day.  I was struck by one thing  he said and one thing  alone and it was this; every time he wakes up for a new day he always begins the day by saying 'thank you lord'. 

I thought long and hard about this, it seemed so simple, but, as  I thought about it, a gradual sense of growing awareness seeped into my consciousness.  'Thankyou, hmmmmm'.   Worth a try I thought.  So I resolved to say Thankyou the next morning.  As I opened my eyes the next morning I remembered my promise to myself and I  focused on a good breath, deep and pure and on the out breath saying 'Thankyou' to myself.

The sensation was good, cleansing; it felt that any anguish was being let go.  Of course this  is the whole point of Buddhism and meditation but here was an answer and action that came from the left field.  I enjoyed the sensation of  saying Thankyou to 'who or what ever'.  

So I began to say Thankyou whenever I felt a little stressed or busy, peeling the carrots, doing the ironing!  Why say Thankyou to these things? It is simple really. The reason I say Thankyou is because I can peel carrots, I can do the ironing and I can cook etc.  the act of saying thankyou to the simplest of things brings an awareness to that act.  I also say Thankyou before running and after running.  If the run has gone well and achieved some good form a Thankyou for that is good but I also focus on the route, what I saw and noticed on the way.  If the run was curtailed or changed because I felt a little out of sorts then good, I acted and changed and was observant. No harm there!  

Again I stress the simplicity of this action is fundamental in achieving an empty state of mind. We tend to go from task to task and not observe our moments. This very simple action  can make us be more in tune and thankful for the small things in our lives.

Worth a try?