The accounting of gratitude
There are no journal entries for gratitude, there is no accounting for gratitude. “Thank Yous” are never recorded. There are no debits, and no credits to enter a glass full of joy. Thank You notes disappear from the minds and Slack threads and are buried in the verbose of long emails. Gratitude is a fleeting feeling, it doesn’t last despite the insistence of publicized gratitude journals. Although gratitude is not financially reported, there is no direct accounting for it, gratitude is significantly impactful in our lives. Gratitude enhances physical health, mental capacity, and relationships, which of course results in greater productivity and income for the most important assets, humans.
I am ending 2022 with gratitude, no journal entries, no numbers, just a heart full of contentment and joy. I am wearing my rose-colored glasses and immortalizing my gratitude through this post.
Rightfully so, I am grateful for this newsletter, it was an accidental decision that resulted from sharing my experience building the financial reporting framework at Ramp. I hope my posts provided some support and knowledge to other accountants or professionals who have the same experience. I also hoped that my posts provided a canvas for my readers to link accounting to different events and help them understand basic accounting concepts and knowledge. While this newsletter is just starting, I am grateful for everyone, every one of you that has taken the time to read it, left a comment, or reached out to me to tell me to keep going. This newsletter is my Sunday night project, an appointment with myself to write and fulfill my long-time commitment to write a book (stay tuned). For 2023, I will keep a bi-monthly cadence but I am also committing to staying flexible and prioritizing time with my loved ones. I will most likely skip the schedule in favor of karaoke with my daughters.
I am ending the year with my family, just like I started it. With my parents, my brothers, and friends, laughter, and home-cooked meals. I am grateful for the most hard-working and supportive parents. I am grateful to my daughters for reminding me that life is silly and simple and that I can dance like nobody is watching. Seriously, I could not have made it without my parents’ Whatsapp group and daily “Sak pase”. My angels, my Black Joy group, Chief models, and fierce ladies, all my intangible assets, simultaneously grounded me and elevated me. Every minute with them is a blessing and I plan to spend more time with my family in 2023 and celebrate every win and lesson learned.
Of course, the most important lesson of the past years is to prioritize my physical and mental health. I cannot function, I cannot parent, I cannot work if I am not healthy and I am grateful that my body reminds me to slow down and take a break when necessary. I am learning how to listen, how to age, how to protect, and how to take care of my temple. I am learning that it is ok to rest, I am learning that sleep is needed (I have a love-and-hate relationship with sleep), and I am learning that I need to disconnect to recharge. I am grateful for this armor. I will continue to embrace it, cherish it and monitor it. It is not a choice but a necessity and whether I want it or not, I am a middle-aged woman and my body is getting old.
This year went faster than I wanted it to. With goals that went unfulfilled, follies that were abandoned, promises that evaporated, and to-dos that overwhelmed. I have a couple of regrets that were raised by my vulnerable impatience, I am writing them off and choosing to close this calendar year with a surplus of hope and wisdom. I hope you can all do the same, close 2022, and start fresh in 2023.
Start with qualifying your Yesses! Start with saying more Nos. Start with choosing yourself, and prioritizing your health. Start with giving the best, being the best, and being the best for Yourself. You are your best asset and you deserve the best care.
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