Gratefulness

The common understanding of the word “gratitude” 
simply does not convey the magnitude of gratefulness 
and all that it offers as a way of being in the world.

—Kristi Nelson, Wake Up Grateful

Gratitude passes through you
like the clouds of mood,
like rain turning to sleet
or gray skies breaking into blue.
It is only gratefulness that stays,
holding your trembling hand
beneath the hospital sheet
as you count each breath,
or jumping up and down
when you hear good news.
It is the faithful companion
we have always been seeking,
this feeling of fullness
that follows us everywhere 
we go, less like a shadow 
trailing the body, and more 
like a glimmer held in the heart
that promises never to leave.

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