A Simple Act of Gratitude
Gratitude can come in any form, at any time. A simple gesture has the opportunity to move you, elevate your mood, or be the catalyst for reflection. Pre-COVID, these simple moments were frequently taken for granted, but after spending almost a year and a half living a substantially different life, I think we can all agree we are far more grateful than we may have been at the start of 2020.
I recall one ordinary day during the winter of 2019; I was leisurely walking to the subway for my morning commute when I heard the train roaring into the station through the sidewalk grates. I did the one thing a person thinks to do when mindlessly commuting through NYC… I ran. As I turned the corner from the turnstile, my suspicions were confirmed: there, in front of me, the train was unloading passengers. Myself and three others broke off into a full sprint. One gentleman who didn’t feel the same urgency looked on with bewilderment as the professional stampede passed him. Our quick pace paid off as we all scrambled onto the last car of the train.
It was as I got on the train that the smallest gesture lightened my mood. I realized what had allowed us to make it onto the train when all hope should have been lost. A man on the train had simply held the doors for all of us. In the city that never sleeps, backed by a “you snooze, you lose” mentality, holding up a train with hundreds of potentially impatient commuters is most definitely something that does not go unnoticed. It’s a big gesture, at least it was to me that morning.
It has been a year and three months since I was last on the subway. I’ll be honest, a part of me misses it, and simple gestures like that are truly what gives life to living in New York.
As New York begins opening, healing, and rushing back to its previous form, allow gratitude to slip back into your day a little more than it may have before COVID changed so many lives. Think about the small ways you may have impacted someone else’s day or how a seemingly insignificant gesture may have impacted you. Gratitude is a natural mood booster and helps combat feelings of depression and anxiety.
Today, I am grateful for a couple of people running during a morning commute and a kind man that didn’t mind holding up a train for them to board. It seems so simple, and it is, but isn’t that what life is all about? Simple moments.
What are you grateful for today?
