“If the only prayer you said was thank you, that would be enough.” - Meister Eckhart

I heard a priest preach this during a homily the Sunday before Thanksgiving when I was in middle school or high school. I took it to heart then and am reminded of it daily. I start every prayer with “Dear God, Thank you”, and sometimes that’s it. Usually I name something specific, or I follow it with “...for the opportunity to…” I got into that habit in high school, and now , I do what James Clear calls ‘habit stacking’, and every time I eat, I drop that little prayer. During every national anthem before a basketball game in college, I drop that prayer. Before I coach every game now, as my team warms up, I drop that prayer. It helps to put things in perspective for me. There was a time (not so long ago) that women couldn’t do what I’m doing now. When organized girls sports was not a thing. When I thank God (or whatever you conceive God to be), I get a rush of reminders that I’m in a great situation because of the hundreds and thousands of people who came before me (and hopefully come after me) and the work they’ve done to get me here. I’m reminded that I have a great opportunity to be a positive influence and to use my avenue for good.