I believe in gratitude and the art of hand written thank you letters, acknowledging the connection between the giver and the recipient and closing the circle. I think taking the time to acknowledge one another is important. Someone takes the time to select and choose and prepare and deliver a gift with a thoughtful heart. The receiver should also take the time to acknowledge the work of the giver and thank them for thinking of them. This creates a bond between two people.

But what happens when one writes the thank you notes and yet never delivers them?

 
Yep. That’s what we do in our family. Notice I say we and don’t take the blame entirely. I’ve given commands and I’ve placed them in safe places and moved them from tables to desks to shelves to the car and back again and yet never quite get them to the right place. 

We write the perfectly imperfect thank you notes and just save them. 

Forever. 

Until it’s too embarrassing to deliver them (or we can’t find them) and I feel too badly to throw them away. What would Marie Kondo say to do? Do they bring me joy? No. They bring me guilt. But I do like seeing the names on the cards and recalling the sweet memories that prompted us to write in the first place.

Could I call this Gratitide Art? That’s being creative!

I just think I missed the mark and created the perfectly imperfect and useless thank you card, never acknowledging the gratitide we feel out loud. That’s embarrassing.  

Tomorrow I will say goodbye to these thank you notes and forgive myself and my family for not following through and expressing our joy in a timely manner. I’ll thank these little cards for their service and set them free with apologies to whom they belong for never reaching your hands. Thank you Miss Kondo.

My friends and family, you are loved and appreciated, even if you don’t ever receive your receipt! I hope you know.

Thank You and You’re Welcome!