Everyday thank yous

If your caregiver(s) growing up were anything like my mother, you understood how important it was to say “Thank you”. I was very explicitly told that I was not to leave a friend’s house without thanking my hosts. I’m pretty sure that was the first question I was asked as soon as I came home. “Did you say thank you?”. It was drilled into my head that you need to show appreciation when people do something for you. Needless to say, as an adult, I now agree that it’s pretty important. I think (hope) most of you reading are nodding your head in agreement as well.

But what are you saying thank you for?

Gifts, someone doing you a massive favor, and passing some type of condiment at dinner. Those are the first things that come to mind when I think of the reasons people should say thank you. I know there are more, but usually thank yous are uttered when something out of the ordinary happens. I think the everyday thank yous are often forgotten, even if that realization feels a little shameful to admit.

Our support system does a lot to keep us functioning throughout the day.

At least, I know mine does. I know I couldn’t do half of what I get done in a day without the people who support me. Don’t get me wrong, I’m firmly in the camp of treating my accomplishments as MY accomplishments. I would never say after a big race, “We did it!”. No one else was out there convincing themselves that they weren’t going to die before they crossed the finish line. That was all me. But it would be a LOT harder for me to even get to the start line without help. He (and the rest of my people) make it possible for me to do what I do everyday. I’m sure you’d say the same about your loved ones.

How often are you saying thank you for the day to day?

I thank my husband when he washes the dishes, because it means I don’t have to do it myself. Not only do I hate washing dishes (no, I can’t explain why) but it also gives me more free time to do something else. I thank him when he kills, or cleans up, a bug because I don’t do bugs. He knows I hate putting clean pillowcases on the pillows, so he’ll take care of it. As I write this I realize how odd I must be to live with, but that’s not the point here. The point is those quirks of mine are day to day tasks that aren’t that significant in the general scheme of life, but I still say thank you. I make it a point to express my gratitude and treat it as a top priority.

Why are they so important, even if they’re small?

I might not remember that time my husband put the groceries away as I’m lining up to break my marathon PR. Actually, I know I won’t be thinking about that at ALL. But those small gestures add up and without them, I don’t know that I’d be able to put the time I needed to into training, for example.

Think of it as building a house.

If someone built you a house, you’d thank them when the job was done and you had an amazing new home. The finished product is obviously wonderful and much appreciated. But that guy who laid the first layer of bricks? He wasn’t around to finish the job, and those bricks aren’t any more significant than any of the others. However, without that one layer, nothing else would be there. Say thank you to him too.

Thank the people in your life who get you through the day. You need the little things in order to get to the big things and people love to know that you see their efforts. So tell them.

Yes, right now. Go. Say thank you to someone you love.