There are times in one's life when you realize the importance of being grateful for little things.  I recently saw a story about a man who, in serious times of stuggle, started writing thank you letters to people in his life.  He decided to continue the practice for 100 days.  It's a nice human interest story, an act that I'm sure he didn't think would make him rich and successful and ultimately a little famous.  That's exactly what it did.  Think about it, how much would your perspective and mood change if you were looking for things to be grateful for?  Not just so that you can write it in a journal for you to keep, but so that you can actually create and send a letter to another person...that takes some committment and it can't help but alter an outlook.

It seems to me that I can always tell when I'm working from an attitude of gratefulness or not.  Things seem to go my way and things seem to come easier when I find time to be thankful for the people and experiences in my life.  I must have been in exactly the right frame of mind in December as I noticed several things.  Maybe these things would happen to me regardless, but I'm not sure if I would have taken the time to notice them for what they were.

Some of the highlights from the trip include a great conversation with a man I met on a plane, an airline worker's dismissing some fees for an overweight bag, super shuttle driver going around the airport twice to reuturn a forgotten bag, a late check out for 2:00 p.m., not 12:00 or even 1:00 but 2:00 p.m.! 

I didn't ask for special treatment, never asked anyone to go out of their way, things just kept popping up as I made my way through the day.  It was pretty amazing, actually.

The next time you find yourself having a day where nothing seems to go right, try saying a few extra thank you's...it just might turn the whole thing around!