David Steindl-Rast Born : July 12, 1926 Browse All Authors Top 69 quotes by David Steindl-Rast The root of joy is gratefulness...It is not joy that makes us grateful; it is gratitude that makes us joyful. David Steindl-Rast gratitude thankful appreciation We have thousands of opportunities every day to be grateful: for having good weather, to have slept well last night, to be able to get up, to be healthy, to have enough to eat. ... There's opportunity upon opportunity to be grateful; that's what life is. David Steindl-Rast gratitude positive life Day and night gifts keep pelting down on us. If we were aware of this, gratefulness would overwhelm us. But we go through life in a daze. A power failure makes us aware of what a gift electricity is; a sprained ankle lets us appreciate walking as a gift, a sleepless night, sleep. How much we are missing in life by noticing gifts only when we are suddenly deprived of them. David Steindl-Rast appreciate sleep night Eyes see only light, ears hear only sound, but a listening heart perceives meaning. David Steindl-Rast light eye heart The antidote to exhaustion may not be rest. It may be wholeheartedness. You are so exhausted because all of the things you are doing are just busyness. There's a central core of wholeheartedness totally missing from what you're doing. David Steindl-Rast exhausted missing may Gratefulness is the key to a happy life that we hold in our hands, because if we are not grateful, then no matter how much we have we will not be happy -- because we will always want to have something else or something more. David Steindl-Rast happiness love life Gratefulness is the inner gesture of giving meaning to our life by receiving life as gift. David Steindl-Rast gestures gratitude giving There is no closer bond than the one that gratefulness celebrates, the bond between giver and thanksgiver. Everything is a gift. Grateful living is a celebration of the universal give-and-take of life, a limitless yes to belonging. Can our world survive without gratefulness? Whatever the answer, one thing is certain: to say an unconditional yes to the mutual belonging of all beings will make this a more joyful world. This is the reason why Yes is my favorite synonym for God. David Steindl-Rast gratitude our-world grateful Everything is a gift. The degree to which we are awake to this truth is a measure of our gratefullness, and gratefullness is a measure of our aliveness. David Steindl-Rast beautiful-life truth-is degrees People who have faith in life are like swimmers who entrust themselves to a rushing river. They neither abandon themselves to its current nor try to resist it. Rather, they adjust their every movement to the watercourse, use it with purpose and skill, and enjoy the adventure. David Steindl-Rast skills rivers adventure Among the many things that profoundly impress me about the Dalai Lama, quite high up on the list is his ability to say "I don't know". I've often wished that other people in prominent positions wouldn't feel the compulsion to have an answer for everything and would feel equally free to say "I don't know." It's a sign of wisdom to know that you don't know and a sign of stupidity to think that you know everything. I admire it enormously in him, and wonder why so few people in leading positions reach that stage. David Steindl-Rast stupidity people thinking We are never more than one grateful thought away from peace of heart. David Steindl-Rast peace-of-heart grateful heart As I express my gratitude, I become more deeply aware of it. And the greater my awareness, the greater my need to express it. What happens here is a spiraling ascent, a process of growth in ever expanding circles around a steady center. David Steindl-Rast gratitude circles growth Joy is that kind of happiness that does not depend on what happens. David Steindl-Rast birthday-wishes happy-birthday joy If you learn to respond as if it’s the first day in your life and the very last day, then you will have spent this day very well. David Steindl-Rast last-day lasts firsts Gratefulness has the courage to trust and so overcomes fear. David Steindl-Rast overcoming-fear overcoming courage Love wholeheartedly, be surprised, give thanks and praise then you will discover the fullness of your life. David Steindl-Rast gratitude godly love Each one of us is called to become that great song that comes out of the silence, and the more we let ourselves down into that great silence the more we become capable of singing that great song. David Steindl-Rast singing silence song Any place is sacred ground, for it can become a place of encounter with the divine Presence. David Steindl-Rast sacred encounters divine Solitude without togetherness deteriorates into loneliness. One needs strong roots in togetherness to be solitary rather than lonely when one is alone. David Steindl-Rast lonely loneliness strong
