A Grateful Heart: Daily Blessings for the Evening Meal from Buddha to the Beatles

by M.J. Ryan (Editor)

Now in paperback, A Grateful Heart is a tool to help readers reclaim and enrich the tradition of pausing before the evening meal to give thanks. Drawing from a range of religious and cultural practices, these 365 blessings celebrate friendship, love, peace, reconciliation, the body, nature, joy, and appreciation of the moment. This illustrated feast for the mind includes quotations from Martin Luther King Jr., Thich Nhat Hanh, Gandhi, Rumi, Mother Teresa, Helen Keller, Denise Levertov, the Bible, and the Tao Te Ching.

Genres: Spirituality, Nonfiction, Poetry, Reference, Self Help

280 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1994

About the author

MJ Ryan is one of the creators of the New York Times bestselling Random Acts of Kindness series and the author of The Happiness Makeover (nominated for the 2005 Books for Better Living award in the Motivational category), Attitudes of Gratitude, The Power of Patience, Trusting Yourself, The Giving Heart, and 365 Health and Happiness Boosters, among other titles. Altogether, there are 1.75 million copies of her titles in print.

Reviews

[Lisa Vegan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This isn’t normally my type of book but I was intrigued. There are some little gems in here. The ones that I appreciated were the purely secular sayings, poems, quotes, blessings and prayers, and there are many included. There’s something here for most, although all of these daily blessings are at least somewhat non-traditional.

[R. C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I owned this book as a teen and went back to it again recently remembering it to be useful. I was surprised to discover that every piece had more meaning for me now than they did before. I guess my experiences have filled out the poems for me some. I think that means this is a pretty great little tome. I look forward to letting the kids pick out a prayer for dinnertime from it each night.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

The title is misleading as most of these are not blessings but quotes and almost none were for mealtime. I tried to enjoy the book anyway but didn’t connect with it.

[Cheryl Licata · Rating 5 out of 5]

The subtitle of this book is "Daily Blessings for the Evening Meal from Buddha to the Beatles." I don't believe there is any reason why this book needs to wait for the evening meal to open it up and read a selection. It is perfect for morning, noon and night. There are so many beautiful thoughts in this book; here is one of my favorites. I adapted an idea from Gail Brook Burket and have made it my own resolution for 2023-- With courage I can scale the highest peaks, and transform every stumbling block into a stepping stone.

[LInda L · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just love this book -- so many things incorporated in it. I read it a long time ago, but have turned down pages and yellowed in and starred a LOT of these sayings/blessings. For this difficult Covid 19 time, here's one of my favorites: It is written that "Everywhere, hands lie open to catch us when we fall". Let us give thanks tonight for this invisible support.
Enough said.

[Nancy Horio · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great little book we read before our dinner

[Nancy Currie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely little book of blessings and sayings to practice gratitude.

[Jeanine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of meditations and prayers with which to count your blessings. Instead of using them at mealtimes, I read them at night.

[Ana · Rating 5 out of 5]

This little book is packed FULL of wonderful daily readings for meals, reflection or whenever! It has also made a wonderful gift to new mothers or brides. I hope it makes it into your home like it did mine.

[Amy A · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of blessings, prayers, and poems, many of which are, as another reviewer said, true gems, but this is not a book to open before dinner for a blessing (my why for picking it up). If not for the misguided subtitle I’d rate it higher. A good and diverse collection.

[Marlena · Rating 5 out of 5]

excellent quotes!

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved reading this book. It was fun to read some of the quotes with my kids and talk about how important gratitude is. A perfect book to read from every day.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Love these quotes from a variety of theologies, ideologies, and philosophies for pausing and giving thanks before a meal.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book of poetry and prose from every age and culture from ancient to modern. If you are looking for a way to bless your family meals you could not go wrong.

[Emily Williams]

All the hippie readings I found when camping in a yurt...

[{erika} · Rating 3 out of 5]

Still a bit too religious for my tastes but a handful of quotes I really connected with and screenshot. "A thankful person is thankful under all circumstances. A complaining soul complains even if he (they) live in paradise."