Gratitude

My seven deadly sins of civilization had fallen away on that pilgrimage. When I had been a glutton, my belly had been full, but I had not felt satiated. When I had been slothful, I had taken plenty of rest, but still I felt tired. When I had been avaricious, I had collected many possessions, but yet I wanted more. When I had been lustful, I had had enough sex, but still I felt frustrated. When I had been vain, I had never felt sufficiently appreciated. My seven deadly sins had all been sins of inner discontent. The discontent made me feel angry; angry at the world, angry at my fellow creatures, angry at myself; and so I had not been happy, and I had not made others happy; but on Art's pilgrimage into the Garden of Eden, the seven deadly sins had fallen away from me -- and by the time Art died, I only felt gratitude, gratitude for the caribou, gratitude for the love of my companions, and gratitude for the peace I felt within. This was the gift I had received on Art's pilgrimage. No greater gift can a person receive…
Gratitude came first in the form of appreciation for small favors, small favors which we now understood to be not so small, the gift of rain, the gift of the sun, the gift of the life of a caribou which had died for us...With the growing sense of gratitude came a growing sense of love: love for creation, love for one another, and love for the grace of God which made us feel so peaceful.

—George Grinnell, A Death on the Barrens