Coat of Many Colors

I was a huge Dolly Parton fan as a kid…still am. I used to cry whenever I listened to her song, “Coat of Many Colors”…still do. Her sincere and innocent expression of gratitude in those lyrics touch me deeply:

Back through the years
I go wonderin’ once again
Back to the seasons of my youth
I recall a box of rags that someone gave us
And how my momma put the rags to use
There were rags of many colors
Every piece was small
And I didn’t have a coat
And it was way down in the fall
Momma sewed the rags together
Sewin’ every piece with love
She made my coat of many colors
That I was so proud of
As she sewed, she told a story
From the bible, she had read
About a coat of many colors
Joseph wore and then she said
Perhaps this coat will bring you
Good luck and happiness
And I just couldn’t wait to wear it
And momma blessed it with a kiss

My coat of many colors
That my momma made for me
Made only from rags
But I wore it so proudly
Although we had no money
I was rich as I could be
In my coat of many colors
My momma made for me

So with patches on my britches
Holes in both my shoes
In my coat of many colors
I hurried off to school
Just to find the others laughing
And making fun of me
In my coat of many colors
My momma made for me

And oh I couldn’t understand it
For I felt I was rich
And I told them of the love
My momma sewed in every stitch
And I told ’em all the story
Momma told me while she sewed
And how my coat of many colors
Was worth more than all their clothes

But they didn’t understand it
And I tried to make them see
That one is only poor
Only if they choose to be
Now I know we had no money
But I was rich as I could be
In my coat of many colors
My momma made for me
Made just for me

She was dirt poor but felt rich as could be cloaked in the coat her (undoubtedly exhausted) mother made with her loving hands.

During my yoga teacher training course, we had an ongoing homework assignment to keep a gratitude journal, and at the end of every day we were to share via email three of our blessings with our classmates and teachers. Not coincidentally, I never felt more awake, present, and in love with my life and the world around me than during that time.

“If the only prayer you ever say is thank you, that will be enough.” — Meister Eckhart

We can practice gratitude in every moment and improve our lives instantaneously. And we can start right now! Close your eyes and run your attention inward. Bring to mind something for which you feel grateful in this moment. Next, bring your attention to your breath. With each inhale, as the breath deepens and expands, so too does your gratitude. With each breath you bring not only oxygen, but also gratitude to every cell of your body. As we move from this place of stillness throughout our day we invite this gratitude to flood our physical body and our movements become a physical expression of it.