Not surprisingly, just before joining the Zoom workshop, I thought to myself, I have NO business participating in this workshop right now. I have way too much to do. You know where I’m going with this … Play isn’t just a reward to be cashed in once all of our to-dos are crossed off the list.

But coming up with that much-touted gratitude list can seem a bridge too far for our overstimulated, overly exhausted selves. So when I’m just too overwhelmed to stretch myself to the heights of gratitude, I reach for appreciation instead.

Like you, I’ve been reading the news out of Washington, DC, and wondering when we’ll ever have a functioning government, where people can meet in the middle and get things done.