Living A Life Of Gratitude: August 2025 Gratitude

“Gratitude during hardship doesn’t ignore pain, rather it helps carry it.”

August is ending today, 31 days of the month is passing by; we are completing 8 months of 2025 – I am overwhelmed with gratitude for God’s mercy and kindness. I am happy to write this post as it’s easy to focus on what is missing in life and forget what is already there in our lives, for we often think of what we lack and what we are missing out in life, thinking about our past with regrets or worried about what the future holds, which does not allow us to live life fully and joyfully in the present moments of our lives.

This is main reason I have learnt over a period of time, to be always grateful and live a life of gratitude, for Gratitude shifts the lens of our eyes and lifts the weight of regrets and discouragements of the past and insecurities of the future.

I want to pause and acknowledge every small little thing I have in my life – from the roof that I live is secure and there’s a comfort that allows me to rest and my heart that kept beating all along, breath filling my lungs, food that is on my table, friends who care, family that supports, all those who serve, to make my life easy, the domestic help, the milk supply, provisions that comes home month after month, the garbage collectors who ensure to empty our bins, the medical shop, the mechanic who takes care of my bike and so many of these moments that look so ordinary in life, but they are actually miracles that I am blessed and favored everyday.

Gratitude is not my weakness but it’s my strength – an energy that keeps me going, not just allowing me to stay positive, but also setting my mind in the right direction. Some people have called it toxic positivity, as it appears that I am blind to the challenges of life and living in a delusionary world. But I don’t see that way for I am fully aware of my difficulties. I do feel it intensely and even acknowledge those emotions – as life has taught me that Feelings are not FACTS and they are subject to pass. Gratitude is not just an emotion when life feels easy, but it’s a choice, a discipline and a way of seeing. When we choose gratitude we don’t deny pain rather declare that God is still faithful in the middle of pain. As I begin the new month I want to be grateful for the whole month of August. Here goes my gratitude list:

I am grateful for:

Aparna’s birthday, we (friends) celebrated her at a joint that we have never gone before – it was another part of the city, almost 22kms - a Dhaba. She treated us with delicious dinner, we cut a cake, brought small little gifts for each other to celebrate friendship.

The next day was friendship day and it perfect time for us to affirm and appreciate one another for the gift of friendship which has lasted more than a decade that we have become family. It warms my heart to be surrounded by friends who care and are in touch almost every day of my life.

Surprises in this month- I had my neighbor who had made mango pickles and generously sent it to us, there was another friend of mine who visited her home town and she brought one big bottle of pickle, another colleague also sent me some snacks and pickles. I am thankful that I have people who add spice in our lives J

Dorothy is getting adjusted to her college – and happy to teach the college students, it’s a blessing that she found something to be busy with, and I love to listen to her classroom stories of her students and how they admire her and acknowledge her efforts. I was glad to accompany Dorothy for a wedding of her college mate at a beautiful place called the Paigah Palace in the city, this gave me a sense of the history of the Nizams, which is one of the oldest palaces and well maintained.

The wedding began at 10 p.m as it was a Muslim wedding, Dorothy was happy to meet the bride and other friends; we were moving around this place and had a lovely time, good food authentic Hyderabad cuisine features iconic delicacies with rich Biryani, slow cooked meat mutton stew, chilly curry, kebabs, tangy egg plant curry, a lot more of rotis, buns, plenty of salads, apricot dessert, ice-cream, cakes with custard.These moments are beautiful as I and Dorothy also enjoy spending time together, taking selfie’s and enjoying the irani chai which was unlimited beginning as a welcome drink, as the weather was cold after a heavy rain and the chai was available till the end of meal.

Glad to have spent some time, volunteering to be with the YWCA staff, as we were marketing the products made by our community women. I also loved playing a couple of games at this FETE, me and my friend Indira won the game of holding the brick with three fingers for 70 seconds... we tried guessing the weight of the cake, and we played a game wherein we targeted to hit with 6 balls which needs to fall in at least 3 Glasses out of many, and we joined in the tambola.

I went around with my friends to the food stalls we tasted chicken lollipop s which was yum, some chicken kababs, chicken cheese rolls, brownie and lemonade with Jaggery. We clicked some photos moving around and yes ! It was Independence Day as well as the feast of Assumption of our Lady at St Mary’s Cathedral, Secunderabad.

Dr Beena my Director at Sahayam Counseling centre decided to host a lunch to celebrate some of the scholars who submitted and completed their PhD, still others who have been actively involved in the Prison work and all the other projects taken up by Sahayam. This lunch was special as we not only had our lunch but we took time to our share our individual journeys and our association with her for many years of our lives.

It was inspiring that all of us had unique experiences, some were scholars, the others were established in the different aspects of life, some in the corporate world, still others in teaching, and me as a consultant had a long journey too … it was a 14 years journey when I walked into this centre as a Psychological counselor feeling inadequate, depressed (I had just lost my 7 year old son in 2011).

As I look back with gratitude I had so much to share about my journey – I completed two Post graduation programmes in Psychology & Philosophy, and got certified as Master Trainer for HIV &AID as a part of the Global funding project, Counseling Supervisor for ICTC(Integrated Counseling Testing centres) for a 3 Centres in the city. I constantly updated myself in order to be relevant, and recently completed my certification in YOGA and a Diploma in Nutrition and Health Education.

I am grateful to my work place for I had enough people coming for counseling, there were some very difficult cases to deal with, which I refer to others who can handle better and continue to stay in touch with them for offering support counseling.

I am also grateful for the opportunity for I did a session on Adolescent Mental health to the Staff of Little Flower Degree College in the city . It was part of the Faculty development programme. I enjoyed the session interacting with the staff and sharing my experiences of working with adolescents.

I am grateful that I could connect with my cousin Maria Bambina - I recall so many holidays spent at my aunts place, and I and Bambi used to visit the Golconda fort as it was walk-able distance from their house, we watched movies together and used to have a lot of fun. My aunt was good at cooking, baking and bambi inherited some qualities of knitting, doll making, stitching embroidery and also good in language, she studied Hindi and taught Hindi as she qualified to be a Hindi pundit.

Once they built their own house and shifted beyond Golconda it became difficult to stay in touch, then our lives changed due to marriage and children. This month was her birthday on the 17^th, so I decided to visit her one day before as it was a holiday for me to celebrate her; for she was not keeping well, had asthmatic attack, she had a knee replacement surgery. I felt deeply for her and took time to spend the day with her and family.

The end of the month I am glad to attend a first birthday of a child by name Hayden, along with Dorothy as it was one her friends nephew-surprisingly the child was so happy and smiled away all the time cutting cake, enjoying the music and posing for photographs.

I am still smiling completing this posts, being Sunday I am glad to attend church and listen to the sermon which was all about humility and doing good to others. As the new month unfolds I pray to the Lord Almighty to bless all of us and grant us good health especially with the current weather here a lot of people are falling sick.