During a luncheon, a priest once told me he had said a prayer — years earlier — to bless all his future meals so he wouldn’t need to say grace anymore. (He was joking.)

* * *

At times, we take action in a definitive way. We take care of things “once and for all” with lasting effect.

Gratitude doesn’t work this way. Gratitude is ongoing.

It’s not to be “taken care of” like an item on a to-do list. It’s a practice that enriches us the more we embrace it.