The Courage of Gratitude

Weekly wisdom to level up your creative life in 3 minutes, for free.

A SHORT STORY

What does it mean to be grateful?

This is a question I have explored daily as a practice over the past four years—and something I thought about every single moment this past weekend, as I witnessed my Dad struggle with his Stage IV Cancer treatment.

What I’ve discovered is that gratitude is the courage to find light in even the darkest places to guide you. It is not the naive insistence that the world is a perfectly delightful place or that everything is going to turn out well.

I’ve also come to understand that the willingness to embrace this perspective—and the practice of doing so—is a discipline.

A few years ago, I was sitting with a friend who was also facing a terminal cancer diagnosis. We did a short meditation together, and I’ll never forget the breath he released at the end, whispering: “I am here.”

In that moment, he taught me about the power of presence—the power of experiencing each moment in life as if it were a prayer.

This past weekend, sitting with so many who are facing the end of life, I was reminded of this beautiful memory. And in those quiet, fragile moments that we will all face, I was reminded that gratitude isn’t about fixing the darkness—it’s about finding the courage to sit with it, and in doing so, letting it shape you into someone who can still say, 'I am here.'

As we gather this Thanksgiving, what might it mean for you to practice gratitude? How might you find light, even in the challenging moments?

A CREATIVE TOOL

Apple is working on an exciting upgrade to Siri, codenamed "LLM Siri," powered by its own Large Language Models (LLMs). This new version will allow Siri to handle more complex requests faster and enable natural, two-way conversations, bringing it closer to the capabilities of OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini Live. Keep an eye on this development—Siri’s next evolution could change the way we interact with our devices!

A PIECE OF ART

“Sonora Desert Poem” by Lucille Clifton

The ones who live in the desert,
if you knew them
you would understand everything.
they see it all and
never judge any
just drink the water when
they get the chance.
if i could grow arms on my scars
like them,
if i could learn
the patience they know
i wouldn't apologize for my thorns either
just stand in the desert
and witness.

Grateful,

Michael