Gratitude lists help focus on the positive

Open up a newspaper or listen to the news and you’re bombarded by wars, famines, financial woes, crime and disasters. Isn’t time to step back, and rather than lament what’s lacking in your life, focus instead on all its blessings — a child’s smile, a friend’s embrace, or the strength of family bonds?

This has been the message in homegrown author Todd Aaron Jensen’s book, “On Gratitude,” that has been inspiring the community during the month-long Burbank READS campaign. The Burbank Public Library has been encouraging people to share their own thankfulness as a response to Jensen’s book.

In the past several weeks, schoolchildren throughout Burbank have been writing their own gratitude lists. They share all the things in their lives for which they’re most grateful, listing everything from parents to ice cream to sunshine. Thousands of lists have been pouring into the library and on Oct. 29, we’ll see just how far the city’s gratitude will stretch.

To express its own gratitude to the community, the Burbank Public Library is hosting a “Party of 100 Thanks” between 1 and 4 p.m. on Saturday. Please plan to attend.

In addition to all the family activities, Mayor Jess Talamantes will unwind thousands of feet of gratitude lists submitted by the people of Burbank.

What are you grateful for?

Louise Paziak

Burbank