The Mom Weekly Volume 25: January 16, 2024

Gratitude has been on my mind lately. Several things have happened in recent weeks to make me think about how being thankful and grateful can have such a big impact on … everyone. And it’s inspired me to make thankfulness a priority this year.

Example 1: The GoFundMe Thank You

I received an individual thank-you to a GoFundMe fundraiser for a young family we know locally. The family began a CaringBridge when the wife was 28 weeks pregnant, as they learned of heart and other problems with the baby boy she was carrying. Even though they pursued in-utero or neonatal surgery, the baby wasn’t a candidate for those, and, as expected, he died shortly after birth. 

A friend of their family organized a GoFundMe for expenses and I donated anonymously on behalf of our family. Of course, the organizer and the recipient can always see who donated, but the public-facing was anonymous for me, as I prefer. 

Here’s the note I received a week or so later:

Nancy, thank you for your overly generous support. We don’t know how to repay or express our gratitude to you. Thanks to your support and others, we’ve been able to just look after our kids, take care of ourselves, and make plans for (baby name)’s funeral and burial without any major worries. We’ve all just been exhausted by all of this and are dealing with it little by little, bit by bit, and in our own ways. It’s been amazing to see our kids take care of us and each other through this as well. I don’t know how else to express it than thank you from all of us. Love,

Now here’s an interesting factoid: it’s the first time I’ve ever received a direct thank you—to me personally—in all the times I’ve donated to a GoFundMe or similar fundraiser. 

Of course I’ve seen the general notes thanking everyone for the donation, but this was the first individualized “thank you” I’ve received. I’m curious and wondering why this thank you meant so much to me.

Example 2: The Wedding Gift Thank You

Dad & I received this thank-you card from your newly married cousin and his wife. We found the note to be so charming that we shared it with you as a good example of what to do, so I’m going to share it here:

We are so happy we got to share our wedding weekend with you! We had a blast and hope you did too, despite that teeny, tiny, bit of rain we had. (Smily face). Thank you so much for the BEAUTIFUL (kitchen gift). We haven’t used it yet, instead we prefer to just look at it and coo over how pretty it is… JK we are just lazy. But we look ford to putting it to good use, especially as soup/stew/casserole season rolls around. Looking forward to seeing you at the beach if not sooner. Love, 

Again, the note made us much happier than one would expect. 

Making Gratitude a Priority

Having experiences and emotions like this makes me want to make gratitude a priority. And I’ve started!

Last week, I read ​this article from the NY Times about Paynter Jackets​, a company founded by husband/wife team which makes small batches of well-made jackets and shirts.

When I read the final quote:

“We make clothes,” Mr. Thomas said. “We don’t make fashion.” 

…I thought, gosh I want to let them know how wonderful this is.

So I went to their website to look around, and being the English major nerd I am, I immediately noticed a tiny typo (well actually a grammatical error, but potato potahto— ‘it’s” instead of “its” in a headline). So I decided to combine them into two.

Here’s what I wrote, which took all of 5 minutes.

I’m sure you’re getting “millions” of DMs and emails after the NY Times article.

I found you from the NYTimes article and your business and approach is wonderful! Thank you so much for making “clothes, not fashion.” One of our daughters is in a PhD school for American Studies and literature and material culture is a concentration of hers, so our family will follow your company with interest. 

The reason for my message is that I was perusing your website and saw a tiny typo in a headline and I thought you would want to know. I hope so, as I would want someone to give me a heads up. It is this story: https://paynter.co.uk/blogs/stories/an-appreciation-of-japanese-culture-and-it-s-impact-on-design-and-business . 

It should be “its impact” NOT “it’s” in the headline. “It’s” means “it is”–that’s an easy way to check if you’ve got the correct grammar–read out loud any contractions, and if it doesn’t sound right (For example: “An appreciation of Japanese culture and it is impact on design and business), it probably isn’t right. 

Thank you again, and keep up the great work! 

After I sent it, it just made me happy that I ran with an idea that I had, and that I could also tell someone that I appreciate the work they are doing in the world.

I was even happier when Becky responded within about 10 minutes thanking me for the “beady eye spot” (British? Who knows? it sounds cool) and thanking me for appreciating their work.

Thankful Every Week ….

I have a goal for 2024 that can be positive for me and others: practice gratitude and thankfulness more often.

My goal: I want to send a thank you or gratitude to one person each week, and small and “completed” is better than some grand gestures. I think that is doable. I’ll keep you posted on it.

Have you had any experiences of gratitude like this recently? 

Remember how much I love you,

Mom

Interesting/notable:

​A Sleep Expert Hacked My Schedule & Now I Snooze Through The Night​

Key takeaways: ‘burning off’ the cortisol that builds up from living life is key to good sleep—chiefly a first-thing short walk in the sunshine (even if it’s not sunny, just outside); a short walk in the evening, and 10-minute tech-free breaks through the day.

​More Teens Who Use Marijuana Are Suffering From Psychosis (WSJ Gift Link)​

This was so frightening to read. Today’s marijuana is so much more potent than in years past.

An Action Item: Begin to gather your tax documents

I’ve noticed emails recently from several firms with tax documents for 2023, and since I’m kind of old school about it, I have been printing them off and putting them in my “Taxes 2023” file that I keep all year long. Then— in a month or so— when I am ready to tackle/begin taxes, I’ve got a good head start. Consider doing the same!

What are you doing this weekend?

Yes, we are having a polar vortex again, but you can still try to plan out some fun things for this weekend.

So, now that it’s Tuesday, what are you planning for the weekend? I’m going to suggest trying to cover four “F’s to get ideas flowing:

*faith—when are you going to Mass?

*friends—what friends will you see or connect with?

*food—any fun recipes you plan to try, or restaurants you plan to visit?

How about ​this copycat Olive Garden chicken gnocchi soup​? (My recipe is slightly different, but you can check The Household Book for that one).

*fun—anything interesting you are going to play, watch, or do this weekend? Now’s the time to think it through, and put it on the calendar (even informally).