Thank You for All that You Do

At night, my husband, Jean-Claude, watches a couple of science fiction or detective shows on television before turning out the lights to go to sleep. During this time, I write in guided journals, an activity that’s especially important to me as I navigate my life with schizophrenia. I practice gratitude and write down my nightly prayers of thanksgiving in the books I have laid out on the bed. Tonight, before he puts on the earphones, I tell him, “Thank you for making the potato salad and doing the laundry today.”

It is important to me to practice gratitude and thanksgiving not just in guided journals, but in my relationships. I don’t thank my husband just for the big things or hard things, but also for the small things and mundane things that can easily get overlooked. I want Jean-Claude to know how grateful I am for all the things he does to make our lives run smoothly and efficiently. He takes care of so many of our household chores in addition to ministering to my needs that it would be easy to get lazy and fall into expectation.

I want him to know how I appreciate him for every act of care he performs. I want him to know I notice all of it and recognize it as love.