I keep hearing from people these, some of my most hated words, "you know how grateful I am."

Do I? 

This comment, to me, is a slap in the face. Gratitude is something you show, not something you say. It's something you do, not something you "assume" other people are going to read into. Has someone done something wonderful, generous, hospitable, kind, or sympathetic? TELL them you are thankful. SHOW them you are thankful. Shower those people with the positive things you have to offer- they've earned it. And yeah, you're gonna have to do that for as long as you hope to receive generosity from those people.

This bullshit about people "knowing" how grateful you are has got to stop! That's called taking them for granted, not showing them your thanks.

Having recently experienced too many "you know how grateful I ams" I have decided that, because I can't change anyone but myself, that I need to pull back on the generosity. If I'm apparently "in the know" about so much stuff, than you won't mind me knowing that you're taking me for granted and then changing my behavior.

I have a poster that reads, "This is My Year" with a burnt orange background and a trendy offset image in white behind it. I hung it from my wall amidst a lovely collection of art pieces. One night, as I slept, it fell right off the wall, face down. All by itself.

It was several weeks later that the irony of that moment finally dawned on me. Maybe this was not my year after all, I remember thinking as I lay motionless on my bed, hastily typing notes into my hand held. My shutters were adjust just so and I could see a near-perfect crescent moon. I wondered when I would have the courage to live my dream and travel away.

Did I even know what that meant yet, I thought?
Before I had an answer I was asleep.