Purpose of Assignment

The purpose of this exercise is to brainstorm a thanksgiving offering or prayer of gratitude to our friends and loved ones, and to actually deliver this offering to them.

We have been gaining insights into our own selves, and into our fundamental interdependence with our families, our communities, and the natural world. During the fall semester, this assignment easily aligns with the celebration of Thanksgiving in the United States . During the spring semester we can also take the time for reflection on the good in our lives despite struggles and emerging into sunny and warmer days after the dark winter. This exercise is meant as a reflection on, and creation of a public expression of gratitude for, the goodness we experience in our lives.

Much of the good in our lives comes in the form of unbidden abundance and our relationships with people and nature. We turn on a faucet, and there is hot water. The sun warms us as we get the opportunity to go to class and teach or learn another day. The earth holds us up and gives forth our food. The bread in my hands, if I have eyes to see, has come through so many other hands. My Native American teacher taught me that among her peoples, the celebration of thanksgiving could go on for days and days - we have only to use our imagination to see all that we might be grateful for right here, right now in this time. People, air, water, flowers, love, music, mountains, fruit trees, freedom...

Thus, the purpose of this exercise is to make the thanksgiving offering or prayer of gratitude to our friends and loved ones and to actually deliver it to them virtually or in person.

Begin by making a longer unedited list of the good things in your life now despite the pandemic. You can almost begin by doing a free-write on all that is good. When you finish, take a few moments just to reflect on it, and how the presence of these things in your life make you feel. Pick a few specific things and related people to whom you wish to express your gratitude. Be specific and concrete. For example: "I am happy to have had the opportunity to teach a class on Buddhism and Human Development. This course gave me such a sense of meaning and purpose, and I want to thank you in particular, NAME, for offering me this opportunity. It meant so much to me and I wanted to say thank you and say how grateful I am to you."

Think about few of these expressions of thanksgiving and gratitude to a few specific, key people in your life and actually deliver your expressions to them live or virtually. Reflect on what the experience was like for you. What did you notice or learn?

Directions

1. List of things & people for whom you are grateful and why? Initial free write/brainstorm -
   • This is your initial free write/brainstorm
   • Aim for a list of at least 10 things and 10 people
   • What is it about them for which you are grateful?
   • You can make a table to record these, if that is easier for you.
2. Write a gratitude letter or script
   • 2-3 of the people that you identified
   • Write the letter/words or offering/prayers that youplan to deliver to each person
3. Commit with courage to actually delivering your offerings/prayers (or part of it) to others and do it virtually or live!
   • Explain how you did or plan to deliver your gratitude to each person
4. Write up a reflection on what you noticed doing this exercise and what the experience of sharing your offering/blessing with others was like for you
5. Include list and reflection in your submission