Congruence and Gratitude

“You can tell a person,
not by what they say they are gratitude for,
but how they respect
what they claim to be grateful for.”
~ Mrs. Donna Priscott~

My mother was of my greatest examples on how to live life with honesty and integrity. This quote was one of her favorite sayings. Long after her passing, I remember every time she said it to me. She wanted me to learn that people don’t just see what I say, they learn who I am by how my actions match my words.

If I expressed gratitude for something then I needed to show respect for it and protect it just as I would anything else that was important to me.

My parents were married for over 50 years. My Mom said a gratitude prayer every day for her marriage and relationship with my Dad. Every day she worked to make sure he knew how much she meant that. She never looked at another man and she always made sure our home was a happy place for Dad to come home to after a long day at work. She was grateful for her two kids, and she spent time teaching us how to be our best, learn our best and present our best.

When I gained over 60 pounds excess weight in college, and the doctors prescribed medicine for high blood pressure, she didn’t ask me why. She asked me if I was grateful for my healthy body and if I was then why was I carrying the extra weight that was having a negative effect on my health?
When my bother experimented with drugs in High School she asked him the same question.

She simply told us to make a choice and live by our words. My choice was to ether give up saying gratitude for a healthy body or give up the unnecessary weight. Her message was empowering and not judgmental, even though I knew she didn’t approve our behaviors. Mom taught me best by her example. I hope I can be as good a Mom as she was to me.

Are you congruent with your gratitude?

Are you showing respect to your gratitude by your actions?

If yes, what are you doing?

If no, what can you change?


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Contributed by Veronica Davina, for inclusion in the book: The “G” Spot, the ecstasy of life through Gratitude, Author Sumner M. Davenport, Self Investment Publishing, #ISBN 9780981523859