Gratitude Journal Experiment: Week 2

In case you’re not familiar with this experiment of mine, I’m going to do 6 gratitude journal entries on my blog to see if it gets me more in touch with happiness. You can read more about how to do a gratitude journal here.

For each entry, I’m going to write 3 to 5 things that made me feel grateful during the week. Please note that I write my posts a week ahead of time so it may be a little outdated when it’s published!

Halloween

I had a really decent Halloween night. We watched Ouija: The Origin Of Evil. Like every Mike Flanagan movie, the cinematography in this movie is good and efficient. I wouldn’t say it’s great – I always have quarrels with backstories of horror movies, but it has some great creepy moments. I jumped and frightened Anth, so that was fun.

We also watched Halloween specials for Modern Family and The Goldbergs, they made Halloween feel so festive and help end the night on a less creepy note.

The best part? It was storming outside when we were watching Ouija: The Origin of Evil. Perfect weather! It poured after 9 PM, so I hope the kids out trick or treating were home already.

Rain

News of the California wildfire is all over the internet. Almost 600,000 people in Northern California found themselves without electricity as Pacific Gas & Electric shut off power to prevent wildfires. Even though California has been experiencing wildfires all along, the wildfires have gotten stronger with climate change.

So, as I lazed in bed getting my doze of jump scares on that Halloween night, I felt more thankful for rain than ever. I wish that it could pour this hard in California too. Many people will lose their homes and everything in it before the wildfire burns out.

I can’t help wondering what the wildfires would do to animals and people who were left behind because they were too sick or too old to evacuate. My heart goes out to them.

So yes, I’m thankful for the rain and the sun that peeked out behind the clouds the next day. And for the earthy scent and the clean air after the storm.

A Roof Over My Head

I guess these posts have a way of becoming a word-association game.

With the storm and the wildfire, I naturally appreciate how lucky I am to have a roof over my head. It’s a blessing to be able to snuggle in bed as the rain and wind whipped around the house. I love the sound a storm makes, but I’d hate to be caught in it. Especially when it’s cold out.

In Singapore, it’s not that bad to be caught in torrential rain because it’s warm. I can’t imagine how cold a person would be if he or she was caught in the storm and had nowhere to go. Yet, that’s the reality of many people who live on the streets.

I’m thankful I have a roof over my head and a big-hearted mom here in the US who treats me like her own daughter. And I’m thankful that my siblings let me stay at their places when I’m back in Singapore.

Hopefully, someday I’ll have a roof of my own and stop being so gosh-darn dependent.

A Break From The Storm

As the storm cleared from the real sky, the metaphorical storm clouds in my head cleared too, revealing a deep blue sky. What a relief! But I’ve swung a little too high.

To deal with these psychological symptoms, I put them at an arm’s length to objectify them. It helps me to deal with the emotions more rationally. So, I can see that I’m a little too happy. I’m so upbeat it doesn’t feel like me. It makes me a little wary because this is always followed by a crash.

Another great thing about objectifying your emotions is that you don’t chase the highs. You know it’s just another state of mind.

I’m thankful that I’m better at tracking my moods now so I can manage it better. That I’m no longer that teenager who didn’t know what was happening in her brain. I don’t know how long this lovely “weather” will last, but I’m thankful to catch a break.

The Person Who Made Me Write

I got lucky, the storm broke just in time to allow me to participate in NaNoWriMo for the first time. I’ve been thinking about doing it for years but never did, and never would if not for Anth.

I used to entertain the idea of writing in my mind the way I entertained the idea of becoming a singer. You know, like an impossible far-fetched dream.

The idea that I can write more than journal entries and captions seemed impossible. I don’t know why Anth thought I can write, but he kept telling me I can. In Singapore, my excuses for him were myriad – it’s too noisy at home, I’m tired from work, I can’t write, I have nothing to write about, and so on.

After I got here, I had time but still wasn’t writing. I had no idea what to write and I was scared of failing. (I think I sucked.) He knew it and still kept encouraging me to learn to turn it into a living. As I got increasingly desperate with my situation, writing became a light at the end of the tunnel. I finally started to blog properly. This blog will turn 1 year old at the end of this month. Sometime next month, I’ll have published my 100th post.

Will this get me anywhere? I’m not sure. Can I write? Sure, I can. It’s not the best but it’s not the worst either. No matter what happens with the blog, I’m very thankful that Anth made me write – I do enjoy it.

Honestly, I don’t know if I’m doing the gratitude thing right. They mentioned details and feel it deeply. So that’s what I did. I suppose there isn’t a wrong way to do it. So my gratitude journal experiment continues!

I hope it hasn’t bored you too badly. Are you keeping a gratitude journal too? Let me know how it’s going!