365 Thank You Cards: A Year That Changed John Kralik's Life

Instead of giving up chocolate or getting to the gym seven days a week, lawyer John Kralik decided for his 2008 New Year's resolution to simply be more thankful for the good people and things in his life.

To stick to his resolution -- beyond the 36 hours it usually takes the strongest soul to pop his first Godiva or skip the treadmill -- Kralik decided to write a thank you note each day for a year to the people that mattered in his life, from his son to the barista at his local Starbucks.

When he sat down to write his first note, thanking his son for a Christmas gift, Kralik realized he didn't have his son's address.

He told NPR's Liane Hansen:

"I called him to get his address," and his son replied, "Gee, I need to stop by and take you to lunch." Over lunch, Kralik's son repaid a loan of several thousand dollars. "So I wrote him another thank you note," Kralik says, "for repaying the loan and also for taking me out to lunch."

The hand-written letters are the basis for Kralik's new book, 365 Thank Yous: The Year a Simple Act of Daily Gratitude Changed My Life. Short and simple, each thank you note reminded both Kralik and each of his recipients about the little things they should be grateful for on a daily basis.

Transformative gestures of thanks are a healing process for many. For Cami Walker, giving 29 gifts to others in 29 days helped her cope with developing multiple sclerosis at 35.

Walker described to Daryn Kagan:

"I'd say the biggest change in my own life is just the change in my thinking and the change in my outlook. That's had a positive impact on every area of my life."

The month-long act of charity was so moving that Walker started a website, 29 gifts, to share her mission and experiences with others. The site now has thousands of members across the world, and Walker has gone on to write a memoir, 29 Gifts: How a Month of Giving Can Change Your Life.

Listen to the full interview with Kralik at NPR or visit 29 gifts.org for help coming up with your own act of thanks this new year.

Comments

[I say]

09:24 PM on 01/03/2011

Writing thank you cards is such a pleasure. I try to do it as often as possible, and give verbal thanks whenever I can to those I may not see again, such as store clerks or managers of great employees. It's fun also to show gratitude to those who most likely receive it the least, like public transportation employees or those providing you service. This last year I've done my best to use those comment sections online for Metro employees or McDonald's employees, or whoever, letting them (and their supervisors/etc) know what a great job they've done. I just hope it put a smile on someone's face like they did for me.

[Diana Bianchini]

10:59 PM on 01/02/2011

Thank you for sharing this story. Great story of gratitude. Taking the time to actually sit down and write with your chosen pen, your note card or paper and in your original and personal handwriting means so much more than an email, tweet or text. I hope this provides inspiration for us all and causes us to reflect much more gratitude in the year ahead. We are all so lucky and blessed. Every little bit helps.

[justforyou]

11:33 AM on 01/02/2011

"Giving thanks for abundance is sweeter than the abundance itself:
Should one who is absorbed with the Generous One be distracted by the gift?
Thankfulness is the soul of beneficence; abundance is but the husk,
for thankfulness brings you to the place where the Beloved lives.
Abundance yields heedlessness; thankfulness brings alertness:
hunt for bounty with the net of gratitude." (Rumi)

[Levi Ben-Shmuel]

11:12 AM on 01/02/2011

It is remarkable what small acts can do to change our hearts and those around us. In particular when times are difficult, remembering to be grateful can be a healing balm to help shift our energy to a more positive place.

[blastocyst]

11:34 AM on 12/31/2010

A noble way to focus gratitude. It's started a wave of humbling remembrances.

Happy New Year, Folks.

[lightbulb10]

10:12 AM on 12/31/2010

Total believer in that!

[Bluepagan]

10:03 AM on 12/31/2010

I think we should all do this. When I think about it, a day doesn't pass where I don't come across a reason to thank someone for something they have done for me. "Thank you" are powerful little words.

[CHMB]

09:47 AM on 12/31/2010

Thank you cards are so underrated, and when someone writes one to you, or you to someone, it really does make a difference.

I recall one occasion when my mom held a wedding shower for her neice and didn't write a thank you card at all. How very nice.

[SaddieMcCall]

11:25 PM on 12/30/2010

I like to say thanks to the individual and write a note to their supervisor (if I was appreciative of their service). I remember once calling to verify the identity of the supervisor of a worker, and I explained that I wanted to express my apprciation for the worker. The supervisor seemed shocked and said, "You mean you don't have a complaint?" It was a real eye opener for me, so many people are quick to make a complaint but never get around to giving a deserved compliment.

[seachange525]

06:41 PM on 12/30/2010

This article felt inspirational...at first. Then I realized this lawyer plans to make money off his behavior by publishing a book about it. No word on the proceeds going to charity. So I guess this is just a book promotion pretending to be about humanitarianism.

[couer]

10:02 AM on 01/05/2011

Don't overthink it. Just go with your first instinct. That's what's important, really. Who cares what this person does with the proceeds? You already figured it out, anyway.....................

[seachange525]

12:45 PM on 01/05/2011

It matters. We are wrecking the planet because we go about our lives as if what we do doesn't matter. Driving the car matters. Spending money matters. It ALL matters. That's NOT overthinking. It's called compassion.

[maxfax]

06:22 PM on 12/30/2010

If anyone is having a tough time of any sort, this is a very good idea in order to remain focused on good, and not the bad.

[ibwilliamsi]

11:40 PM on 12/30/2010

Amen to that. There really is a lot to be thankful for. All one has to do is open their eyes and acknowledge it. The hummingbirds fighting over my feeder, and the wildly red heads that the males sport. My silly Labrador chasing the reflection of my watch on the ceiling. The tree-frogs chirping on a summers eve. It's a little more difficult when it has been raining for the past 50 days in a row, but it can be done. I try very hard to keep it in mind when "I enjoyed that". It sounds overly simple, but the little things really are what life is all about. Not the junk people want to unload on you.

[AgingLady]

02:41 PM on 12/30/2010

Great story, great example. I don't think I am up for 365, but this makes me think I could do this once a week. Thank YOU for the story and the idea and the push to be a positive person this coming year.

[Cory111]

01:35 PM on 12/30/2010

Watch the movie "My dinner with Andre."

[CarmenCameron]

01:12 PM on 12/30/2010

As a child, the RCC nuns taught me that what Jesus wanted from me as "His Christmas present" was my lunch money for the whole month of December to buy yet another plaster statue for the church.

As an adult - and as a far better informed Christian than I was back then - I think Jesus would like Mr. Kralick's idea a whole lot better than the nuns'!

"Your gratitude to each OTHER is the only gift I want." Jesus, from "A Course In Miracles", Original Edition.

What better way to learn how to live the commandment to love our brothers as ourselves?!?

[HawaiianLady]

01:50 PM on 12/30/2010

While I love the church and have had some great nuns taking part in my education, I think some of them should have their heads examined for holes ... taking a kid's lunch money for a statue, and for a whole month??? That's insane. And you're right about gratitude being what Jesus wants. I'm sure it is. The statues have their place, but real feeling from the heart is what He's interested in.

[ibwilliamsi]

11:41 PM on 12/30/2010

What lunch money? Peanut butter sandwiches and whatever else my mom stuffed in the bag...

[alyseven]

12:38 PM on 12/30/2010

I'd like to think life was that simple and easy to package, but it's not. That said, if this worked for him, great. Whatever people can do to get through and make life easier for themselves and others is a win. Personally, I would not go as far as forcing myself to do something like that every day simply because it would take something away from the sincerity of it (for me). I DO think hand-written notes make a difference and I do sit out and write them occasionally when I really want to express some sentiment, (a hand-written thank-you note to Sen Bernie Sanders for his filibuster on taxes, a just-saying-hello card to my grandmother, etc.) I think little things like this should get more notice and discussion in the media because we all need ways to get through the day and to remember that we're all in this together- like it or not.