On: June 14, 2009

Most of us have things or individuals we appreciate.  It could be a job, one’s eyes, a friend, where one lives, or a place in the woods where one finds solitude.

I remember someone telling me that they hoped I appreciated how fortunate I was to be healthy.  I also remembering then asking myself, well how should I appreciate that fact?  Do I say “I’m fortunate to have good health” a few times a day?  Do I write that fact in a Gratitude Journal?

After thinking about this for years, I’ve finally realized that: the way one appreciates something is to take care of it.
In the case of a job, you do your best, you get to work on time, you stay late when needed, and you offer to work on holidays.

In the case of one’s eyes, you make sure you have good light when you read, you wear sunglasses, and you have a periodic eye exam,

In the case of a friend, you spend time with them, you give them priority, and you thank them for being who they are.

In the case of a place in the woods, you keep it clean.

And in the case of a country, you do the small things, citizen actions, that when done by all of us when the opportunities arise and over a lifetime, keep the country strong, vital and thus free. Good Citizen has a list of 100 citizen actions