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Tag: Meaningful

  • 7 Creative Family Gratitude Practices That Make Appreciation Meaningful and Accessible

    7 Creative Family Gratitude Practices That Make Appreciation Meaningful and Accessible

    You’re sitting around the dinner table with your family after a long day. Homework is scattered across one end, someone’s still chewing the last bite of dinner, and you ask the question… 

    “What are you grateful for today?”

    Without even looking up, your oldest mumbles something about video games. Your youngest shrugs. The silence stretches just long enough to feel awkward before someone asks to be excused.

    Children need to see gratitude in action to really grasp the idea. They need to experience it with us. Only then does gratitude become real for our kids—when we live it together.

    We can’t expect our children to understand gratitude just because we ask them about it. The question itself falls flat because it’s abstract and repetitive. Kids end up saying the same things over and over (“my family,” “our house,” and “my dog”), and what could be a meaningful practice becomes just another item to check off before leaving the table. 

    Children need to see gratitude in action to really grasp the idea. They need to experience it with us. Only then does gratitude become real for our kids—when we live it together.

    Why Starting Family Gratitude Practices Early Matters

    There’s something powerful about introducing gratitude when children are young. Their minds are like sponges, absorbing everything around them—the good, the challenging, and everything in between. When we weave gratitude into their early years, we’re creating neural pathways that support resilience and emotional well-being throughout their lives.

    Early gratitude practice can shape how children see the world. It teaches them to notice the good alongside the hard, to appreciate the helpers in their lives, and to find joy in small moments. Research shows that gratitude contributes substantially to individual well-being, strengthens relationships, and helps people navigate adversity with greater resilience.

    And children are naturally receptive to new practices. While adults might struggle to shift ingrained patterns of thinking, kids can more easily develop habits that become second nature, especially when those activities are  fun, engaging, and done together as a family.

    The Power of Practicing Gratitude Together

    Kids learn by watching us. When we model appreciation (not just talking about it but actually living it) our children see what gratitude looks like in real life. Practicing gratitude together means actively engaging with each other, noticing the good in our lives, and celebrating it as a family. 

    By doing so, we’re building individual resilience in each family member while simultaneously deepening our relationships with one another. We develop a shared language of appreciation that helps our family navigate challenges, stress, and uncertainty as a team.

    The good news? This change doesn’t require hours of practice or complicated strategies. It just requires showing up together with intention and a willingness to notice the good.

    7 Creative Family Gratitude Practices

    So how do we move beyond the abstract question of “What are you grateful for?” and into practices that actually resonate with kids? The key is making gratitude something families do together rather than just talk about.

    Look for practices that are:

    • Part of daily life: Focus on real people, moments, and experiences that fill your days.
    • Concrete and tangible: Kids can see, touch, or create something related to their gratitude.
    • Fun and engaging: When practices feel playful, children (and parents!) want to do them.
    • Quick and simple: Keep it to five minutes or less, because who has endless time?
    • Varied and interesting: Different practices keep gratitude fresh and exciting.

    Each of the following seven practices focus on a different aspect of appreciation, from celebrating the people in our lives to noticing everyday comforts we often overlook. Try one that resonates with your family or rotate through them to mix things up!

    1. Family Appreciation Photo Walk

    Take a brief weekly walk together where each family member takes “mental photos” of things that remind them of someone they love. Maybe a certain flower reminds your daughter of Grandma’s garden, or a basketball hoop makes your son think of his best friend. As you walk, use your hands like a camera viewfinder and say, “Click!” to capture the moment in your mind. When you return home or gather for dinner, share your mental photos and explain the connections.

    Tip: Want to extend the practice? Bring a real camera along so you can capture and share actual photos later, talking about why each image reminded you of someone special.

    2. Helper Hero Cards

    Invite your kids to create simple thank-you cards for people who helped them during the week. These might be teachers, bus drivers, siblings, neighbors, or anyone who lent a hand. Include drawings, stickers, or just a few heartfelt words. Then deliver them together. This practice makes gratitude tangible and teaches children to notice helpful actions in their daily lives. 

    Tip: Keep a stack of blank cards or paper readily available so kids can create these spontaneously in the moment when a feeling of gratitude strikes.

    3. Mirror Moments

    This thirty-second daily practice is simple but powerful. Have your child look in the mirror and say one thing they’re proud of about themselves. It might be, “I was kind to my sister today” or, “I tried really hard in soccer practice.” The key? Parents should model this, too. Kids love (and need) to see adults appreciate themselves. This builds self-compassion, self-esteem, and confidence—for the whole family. 

    Tip: Make it part of your family’s routine by doing it right before or after everyone brushes their teeth in the morning or at bedtime.

    4. Memory Jar Magic

    Keep a jar in a common area of your home along with small pieces of paper and pens. Encourage family members to write down a favorite moment and drop it in the jar each day. These might be big moments (“Dad came to my recital!”) or tiny ones (“The dog made a funny face”). On tough weeks or at the end of each month, read them together and re-live the joy. This creates anticipation for good moments and helps families hold on to happiness during stressful times. 

    Tip: Decorate your jar together to make it special or use different colored papers for each family member.

    Make it a family practice to genuinely acknowledge and thank the community helpers you encounter during your regular routines. When you’re out running errands together, pause to thank the grocery store cashier, wave to the mail carrier, or say good morning to the crossing guard. The key is doing this together as a family so kids see you modeling appreciation and learn that gratitude can be woven into everyday moments. At dinner, share who you thanked that day and why their work matters.

    Tip: Challenge younger kids to remember one helper they want to thank on your next outing. Make it a game to spot and appreciate people who make your community work.

    6. Nature Gratitude Ritual

    Step outside together into your backyard or a nearby park, or even just look out a window. Each person should try to find one thing in nature they appreciate right now. Maybe it’s the way sunlight filters through leaves, a bird’s song, or the smell of fresh air. Share your discoveries without phones or distractions. Stay fully present with each other and the natural world. This practice works in any season and any weather! 

    Tip: Younger children might enjoy collecting their gratitude finds (a special rock, interesting leaf, or pinecone) to keep as a reminder of their appreciation for nature.

    7. Gratitude Detective Game

    Turn gratitude into a playful detective game where everyone searches for everyday things we usually overlook. Challenge your family: “I spy with my grateful eye… something that keeps us warm!” (blankets, the heater, or cozy sweaters). Take turns being the detective who gives clues about everyday comforts while others guess. Play during dinner, car rides, or before bed. This helps families appreciate the invisible infrastructure of daily life, such as running water, electricity, safe roads, and working appliances—in a fun, engaging way.

    Tip: Keep score if your kids are competitive or make it collaborative by seeing how many “gratitude clues” your family can come up with together in five minutes.

    Starting Your Family’s Gratitude Journey 

    Building gratitude practices when children are young gives them tools for lifelong resilience and emotional well-being. It shows them how to notice goodness even during challenging times, how to appreciate the people and moments that make life rich, and how to stay connected to what matters most.

    When families practice gratitude together, we create shared experiences that strengthen our bonds and help us navigate life’s inevitable ups and downs as a team. Remember, the goal here is connection, not perfection. You don’t need to do all seven practices, or even multiple practices. Even one practice done regularly makes a real difference. 

    Start with whichever one resonates most with your family right now. Try it for a week or two and see what happens! Through this simple act of practicing gratitude together, you’re shaping how your children see the world. That perspective will serve them throughout their entire lives!

    And that’s worth celebrating.



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  • How Present-Moment Awareness Can Make Life More Meaningful

    How Present-Moment Awareness Can Make Life More Meaningful

    Presence is meditation in motion. It is the practice of bringing mindfulness into the activities of daily life. We can practice the art of being here, now, while waiting in a long grocery store line, changing a baby’s diaper, or sitting in traffic.

    Presence involves a simple yet incredible shift—from the ordinary state of mind wandering to bringing our attention to the experience of what is happening right now. You can make this shift anytime, anywhere. 

    Why develop this habit? Spiritual leaders and philosophers have attempted to answer this question for thousands of years. And yet Ferris Bueller (the impetuous high school student from the classic 1986 film) might just have the best answer: “Life moves pretty fast,” he warned. “If you don’t stop and look around for a while, you might miss it.”

    He’s right. Life without presence moves pretty fast. When we wake up, go to work, and do the other things we need to do, we often operate on autopilot; the days fly by, as do the weeks, months, and years. In fact, scientists have confirmed that this experience of time “flying by” increases with age. With each passing year, the novelty of life diminishes and our perception of time accelerates.

     When we wake up, go to work, and do the other things we need to do, we often operate on autopilot; the days fly by, as do the weeks, months, and years. 

    This has led the mindfulness teacher Jon Kabat-Zinn to argue that if you really want to live a longer life, presence—not drugs, healthy eating, or any other strategy—is the best solution. You may not actually live longer in terms of calendar time, but your experience of life and your perception of time will expand. The days, months, and years can be richer, more meaningful, and more fully lived.

    Appreciating the fall leaves, listening to the crunch under your feet as you walk on the winter snow, smelling the scents of flowers or fresh-cut grass, feeling the warmth of the summer sun—these simple acts of presence slow life down. They help us go through each day feeling more alive, awake, and content.

    There are other benefits, too. Presence doesn’t simply change the quality of being. It can also transform the quality of what you do, leading to greater creative flow, enhanced relationships, and increased productivity at home and at work. 

    Through developing the habit of presence, we can get in touch with the fundamental wonder of what it is to be alive, and even the most ordinary moments become extraordinary.

    How to Stay in the Present Moment

    But it’s not that simple. There’s also something quite mysterious about this moment. It’s not like the past, which stretches infinitely behind us. It’s also not like the future, which stretches infinitely ahead. In fact, the moment you try to capture it, it’s gone. It becomes just another part of the past. 

    Philosophers have strived to define the present moment. While some have seen it as almost nonexistent—fleeting and infinitely thin—others saw it as having infinite depth. 

    In fact, the ancient Greeks identified three ways that opening to the present moment increases the depth of our experience and productive possibilities of each moment. First, when we fully experience what is here and now, we no longer postpone what we most want. We live our fullest life now. The philosopher Epicurus captures this ethos of urgency:

    “We are only born once—twice is not allowed—and it is necessary that we shall be no more, for all eternity; and yet you, who are not master of tomorrow, you keep on putting off your joy?”

    This is something many of us have experienced. Have you ever heard the shocking and sad news that someone close to you has died and then thought, Am I living life as fully and as presently possible? Death makes us acutely aware of our aliveness and the preciousness of each moment.

    Second, attending to the present moment enables us to take advantage of the full range of possibilities that exist in each moment. This helps us adapt to even the most challenging situations. If you’re stuck at the airport with a long delay, you can let your mind swirl with thoughts about the past and future: I should have taken the earlier flight or I am going to be so late and tired. Or you can experience the power of the present moment and take advantage of the new possibilities available to you as a result of the delay: go for a brisk walk through the concourse, read for pleasure, eat a meal, or catch up with friends on the phone. 

    When we manage to enter the razor-thin moment of presence, something amazing happens: anxieties and resentments dissolve. We experience more ease, calm, and peace.

    Being present opens up a third possibility: happiness and well-being. When we spend the day traveling through the past and future, we tend to get trapped in a host of negative emotions, from anxiety to irritation to resentment. The Epicurean school of ancient Greek thought used sayings like this: “Senseless people live in hope for the future, and since this cannot be certain, they are consumed by fear and anxiety.” 

    When we manage to enter the razor-thin moment of presence, something amazing happens: anxieties and resentments dissolve. We experience more ease, calm, and peace. In short, we experience more well-being. What is the present moment? This almost sounds like a trick question. Everyone knows that the present moment is what’s happening now. The wind in the trees, the touch of fabric against your skin, your dog brushing up against your leg. 

    The Science and Practice of Presence

    The science on this is clear. Spending more time in the present moment leads to greater happiness.  A Harvard University study conducted in 2010 by Matthew A. Killingsworth and Daniel T. Gilbert, for example, revealed that happiness is inversely related to mind wandering—the amount of time that we spend time traveling through thoughts about past and future.  

    Killingsworth and Gilbert discovered that most of us spend a lot of time mind wandering—distracted from the present moment. In fact, the average person spends 47 percent of the day mind wandering: thinking about something other than his or her present activity.

    Their key insight, however, wasn’t just that our minds wander. It was the link between presence and happiness. Killingsworth concluded, “How often our minds leave the present and where they tend to go is a better predictor of our happiness than the activities in which we are engaged.” In other words, this landmark study shows that one of the keys to happiness lies in simply redirecting our attention from mind wandering and distraction to what’s happening right here, right now in the present moment.

     A Practice to Shift Your Attention to the Present Moment

    1. Notice—see if you can become aware—each time you step into the shower. 
    2. Shift your attention to the sights, sounds, and bodily sensations of the present moment. To do this, we recommend that you ground your feet and bring your attention to your breath. Use what we call the “4×4 breath” or the box breath—four counts in, four counts out, for four breaths. This move will help you begin building the habit of shifting your attention from mind wandering and stress to the present moment. 
    3. Rewire—encode this experience deep into your memory by savoring it for just 15 to 30 seconds.

    Quick Tips

    • Do it every day: Practice presence every day and, if you forget to do it in the shower,  practice presence during some other everyday life moment, such as walking up the stairs or starting your car.
    • How to remember to do it: The most difficult thing about building this habit is remembering. To help you remember, we have developed a low-tech but extremely effective method. Put a sticker at eye level on your shower door. If you don’t want to use a sticker (or don’t have a shower door), you could use a piece of masking tape with “Presence” written on it. After a month or so, once the habit is ingrained, you may find that you no longer need it.
    • How you know it’s working: After a couple of weeks or a month, you will likely start to notice that you no longer need to consciously remember to experience presence. It just starts to happen as you enter the shower. This is the magic moment of habit formation. It means that your brain has wired a new set of connections around this everyday activity.
    • If you want more: If you have mastered the habit in the shower, try adding an advanced cue: stairs. Every time you walk up or down a flight of stairs, see if you can be present. This is a perfect time to feel the sensations in your feet or to bring your attention to the sights and sounds that occur as you step. This additional cue will take you even deeper into the experience of presence.

    Adapted from Start Here: Master the Lifelong Habit of Wellbeing by Eric Langshur and Nate Klemp, PhD.

    Mindfulness teacher Jason Gant reflects on a heartfelt memory when he was able to lean on his deep practice and mindfully take action. Read More 

    Reclaim the first few moments of your day by dedicating some time to morning meditation or an empowering routine. To help you get started, we’ve gathered our best tips on how to ease your mind and body into a new day. Read More 

    • Mindful Staff
    • April 28, 2021

    Tita Angangco, cofounder of The Centre for Mindfulness Studies, shares a loving-kindness meditation that serves as an ignition to spark change. Read More 

    • Tita Angangco
    • April 12, 2021



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