A Man to be Grateful For: Martin Luther King Jr.

"Hatred paralyzes life; love releases it. Hatred confuses life; love harmonizes it. Hatred darkens life; love illuminates it."

 

"Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity." 

"Peace if possible, truth at all costs."

Today, Grateful Brand honors the memory of Martin Luther King Jr. May we never forget nor misinterpret what he fought so dearly for: equality for all people. 

Design With Gratitude

One of my favorite things to do in the world is to simply come home. My space is far from lavish but it’s mine. There are even times when I wish my two cats would leave for a weekend, but they themselves contribute to making coming home special.

Living in Los Angeles though, I find myself being inundated with trends. What you wear, what you listen to, how you speak, who you know and who they know and who those people know, diets, fads, what you drive and how your home is designed are all up for discussion, or rather, scrutiny to determine what the It thing is from moment to moment.

I can’t afford to follow most trends set in this city and instead of feeling sub par, I actually feel as though my life is just less complicated. The aesthetic of my home though, is very important to me. While I avoid clutter between my occasional messes, I have surrounded myself with photos, books, plants, a white board, an electric guitar that my Dad gave me when I was in college, some artwork, a vintage metal trunk that I’ve had since attending boarding school, and a 1920’s era desk. All of these things appeal to my sense of beauty but they also have a story. They are in many ways reflections of me and I feel privileged to have so many things that never cease to conjure up warm feelings and fond memories.

My modest collection also inspires me on a regular basis. Does this look familiar? It should.

That is because this is my Paul Neubauer desk, the very same desk used in the design of www.gratefulbrand.com. But contrary to what you may be thinking or perhaps Googling, Paul Newbauer is not the latest interior design brand name to hit the LA scene. This desk once belonged to a gentleman named Paul Neubaurer. 

This label was still intact in the upper right hand drawer when I acquired the desk from a production studio set designer.

When I purchased my Paul Newbaurer it was not in its current condition. In fact, a lot of time, effort, sweat and love went into bringing this desk back to life and, in doing so, my dear Paul Neubaurer has inspired me tremendously and serves, every day, as the platform from which I express my gratitude to the rest of the world.  

Make your home a place that you are grateful to be in. It will serve you well. I promise.
 

Food for Thought and Candy for the Eye

I love venturing to the Hollywood Farmers Market on Sundays. Even if I don’t purchase anything, it’s still a pleasant place to spend time, people-watch and take in a little culture. There are so many wonderful things to see, smell and experience. The produce are always incredibly fresh and aesthetically pleasing to the eye. I wish it wasn’t limited to just Sundays.

On this particular excursion I came across a very focused young woman who was writing poems with a vintage typewriter on her lap. Any subject you’d like for what ever you’d be willing to pay. I wish I had had some cash on me.

I also met a brilliant musician by the name of Phillip King who played the harp with incredible dexterity. Amazingly, he paired this classical based instrument with beat boxing. The combination was unexpected but magically, it worked.

                         

While walking home from the Market, I began to reflect on my experience there. It was all just so easily accessible. Quality food, food education, works of art, crafts of all sorts, music, the sense of community, laughter. It was, for me, normal: a typical Sunday morning. I then began to think about how many people in the city of Los Angeles simply lack the ability and resources to access such a wonderful market. But in relation to the world, Los Angeles is so small. There are millions of people on this planet that don’t have access to nutritious food and clean water. There are millions of people on this planet that lack the freedom to express themselves artistically. 
 

It is amazing to think how incredibly fortunate we are.  

What We Can Learn from a Molted Feather

This morning I enjoyed a wonderful exercise in interpretation and projection. Having been an English major with a heavy concentration in Poetry, I tend to examine and dissect literature, visual art, nature, inanimate objects and interestingly random occurrences, finding meaning in Life’s, often overlooked, small details.

As I opened my apartment door to let my two cats, Quarterback (QB) and Sadie, out into the courtyard, I noticed this feather positioned exactly as pictured on the railing directly in front of my door. “How peculiar,” I thought. I immediately returned for my handy iPhone to capture the photo. Personally, I find the symmetry to be quite beautiful.

I then began to think about the bird that may have lost this feather and whether or not it was still alive and, if so, able to fly without it. Judging by the ash-gray color, I would guess it once belonged to a pigeon, but I’m no ornithologist. I then began to think of myself as a bird and what species I might be. Then came the self-pity. Don’t judge. We’re all allowed every now and then.

I have experienced enough rejection in my quarter century to now be able to handle rejection of all sorts very well. However, I also like to think of myself as a veritable wagon wheel, but with more important things to support than a payload of bruised ego. This doesn’t mean, though, that I simply forget. Numerous opportunities I’ve pursued, people I’ve been completely enamored with, and jobs I’ve applied for have all fed me, “you’re not this and you’re not that and you don’t have this and you don’t have that,” and so forth and so on. Disappointment and hurt are alive and well, but after my moment of pity, reflecting on the metaphorical feathers that I don’t have and feeling like a little brown emu, I realized that I needed to get over myself.

I chose to believe that my pigeon friend, wherever he may have been, was alive and well and I returned to reality. If you watch enough National Geographic and Animal Planet, you’ll know that molting is a natural occurrence in most animal species and, in the case of birds, where one feather is lost, another eventually takes its place leaving flight uninterrupted.

I am not an emu. In fact, I believe I have more in common with that obnoxiously resilient pigeon than I initially thought this morning. I may not have or may not be many things but, nevertheless, I am flying. Perhaps not gracefully, but flying is flying.  For the ability to keep my feet ever so slightly off the ground, I am grateful.

And, if you think about it, there’s really no place I can go but up.     

Share your stories with me at gratefulbrand@gmail.com. I would love to hear from you.

  

Life: Beautiful, Not or In Between

While driving north on La Brea Ave or Highland Ave in Los Angeles, California toward Hollywood, it’s hard to miss the large “Life Is Beautiful” murals painted on the sides of two prominent buildings. And it’s true; if asked to give a simple yes or no answer to whether Life was beautiful or not, I would say that Life is indeed beautiful. But lets be honest about our understanding of Life and how we’ve experienced it. I’m sure you’ll agree that Life is all encompassing: yesterday, today, and tomorrow, the good, the bad, and the indifferent. I don’t mean to come off as being cynical—I agree with the obvious message captured in this artwork—but the murals also capture a simple, yet less obvious, truth as implied by the choice of colors and conceptual design.

The bold, white block lettering followed with an exclamation point implies optimism, truth, love, hope, good; a myriad of wonderful things that affirm the joys that contribute to making Life beautiful. But we would be delusional if we dared to assume that Life’s beauty is summed up in general positives. Life is easily corrupted with lies, hate, violence, injustice, struggle and this is illustrated by the dripping white paint, ascending from the letters themselves. As if being corroded naturally, the artist has given the city of Los Angeles a beautifully accurate visual metaphor for the city itself, and Hollywood in particular. So many people flock to Los Angeles in the pursuit of grand dreams only to leave mentally and physically crushed and penniless. This reality is further captured by the black background, which represents the balance between Life’s joys and pains.

This is a very random thought, but appropriate for the subject matter. I have an affinity for nature documentaries and while I enjoy observing and studying wildlife, the truth is, a lioness will nurture her cubs in one scene and will be hanging from the jugular of a zebra in the next, or will even destroy the offspring of competing species with fervent hatred. This is life, and this is just the way it is and, will continue to be.

The artist and optimist in me wants to see these murals inspire everyone who gazes upon them for many years to come, but, instead of believing solely that Life Is Beautiful, I must resign myself to believing that, in Life, there is beauty—of which the eye of the beholder should interpret and come to an individualized conclusion—scattered amongst everything else, and therefore, Life just is.

In believing that Life just is, though, I realize that I am taking away from the romance that comes with pondering Life’s meaning or purpose. But I want to assert that even if my interpretation on this artwork is completely misguided and I come off as being artistically uninformed, know with absolute certainty that I am grateful for Life: yesterday, today, and tomorrow, the good, the bad, and the indifferent.

Life is. And I am grateful.
       

Putting “Thank You” on a Scale

If your mothers or grandmothers were anything like mine, you’ll be able to attest to being constantly reminded of the importance of saying Thank You. As a child, if I received anything, be it a compliment, a snack, and on some occasions, even a scolding, the exchange would immediately be followed by that firm motherly voice, commanding, “What do you say?” By the time I received my queue to prove to whomever that I was a well-mannered child, I was usually fixated on something completely different. I was always quick to respond, but rarely was I able to maintain eye contact. This was forgivable. I was young.

Now, as an adult, being courteous is just standard protocol. I would go so far as to say that for most, it is akin to a reflex and, if you happen to lack this reflex, well then, you must be pretty important.

For the rest of you who remain in tune with your surroundings, I would like to give you something to ponder. What if we could apply a measurement to our Thank Yous, specifically, weight. This measurement would be a reflection of the degree of appreciation and sincerity associated with each individual Thank You that we utter. The heavier the Thank You, theoretically, the more appreciative and sincere you are. How heavy would the average of all of your Thank Yous be over the course of one month? Bear in mind that this is taking into consideration anything from thanking the bagger at your local grocery store to thanking the only compatible person in the world for voluntarily coming forth as a match for a vital organ transplant.

The point of this hypothesis is that the weight of a Thank You can mean the difference between someone wanting to return to their job the next day or not. It could be the unexpected boost that someone needs to feel like they matter in a world that doesn’t seem to care very much about them. You just never know.

With all of the technology at our disposal—regularly being carried—and because of how self-absorbed we all tend to be, I would wager that the average weight of a Thank You is pretty low, especially directed toward those whose occupations are solely designed to serve or convenience others.

Recently, I hosted a holiday gathering that also served as the makeshift birthday party for my friend, Pete’s, girlfriend. Not having very much money to put towards the occasion, I decided I was going to, instead, devote a little more time and creativity than I had initially planned. I bought some cheap wine, cooked a huge pot of Thai Yellow Curry and made a small Birthday Cake. Once the food was ready, I cleaned my studio apartment, put on some music and lit a mistletoe-scented candle. It was the best I could do but I knew it would be appreciated. Our little gathering went smashingly, candles were blown out, wishes were made and we finished the night in fine style.

The next day Pete called me. My immediate thought was that he had forgotten something but we briefly exchanged memories of the night before, laughing, but then he paused. “I needed to say Thank You again.” He told me how special he thought everything was and how much his girlfriend appreciated everything and I casually responded, “No worries, man. I’m glad you enjoyed.”

What Pete doesn’t know is that when I got home the night before, I looked at my place and thought, “I can’t do this again.” But his call changed everything. He didn’t have to, but Pete gave me a very heavy Thank You and knowing that my efforts were appreciated and knowing that I, as a person, was appreciated, meant a lot to me.

As you go forward, I expect that you will remain courteous, but I encourage you to put a little more weight behind your Thank Yous. Again, you never know what effect it may have.

Welcome to Grateful Brand

Welcome to Grateful Brand –

Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others. - Marcus Tullius Cicero

He couldn’t have said it better. Two thousand years ago, Cicero hit the nail on the head and today, in our time, I have created Grateful Brand to serve as a reminder of the importance of being grateful, expressing this gratitude through positive messaging and acts of kindness.

While our name will soon appear on various products, Grateful Brand is first and foremost a metaphorical badge: a way of thinking, and even a state of being. In 2008 I had an encounter with a woman who, without exaggeration, had been through more than most people could bear in the duration of a lifetime. Her experiences had weathered her far beyond her years yet she shared with me, with a charmingly warm disposition, one of the best phrases I’ve had the privilege of hearing.

“If nothing else, brand me grateful.”

With a youthful motion, she balled her fist and pretended to brand her hip, while making a clever “tsss” sound, as if her tattered overalls were being singed by a hot piece of iron. I realized that, for her, being grateful was a permanent state of being and that she was a better person for it. At the time, I was not capable of living as harmoniously with my own set of circumstances, yet I have held on to that phrase ever since and now, in spite of everything that has been and everything that has yet to come, I have chosen to adopt my own Grateful Brand.   

I am thrilled to finally take the plunge and openly share with you what, in truth, represents the core of my happiness and success. Through following my progress, I hope you will be inspired to spread this message and perhaps be encouraged to adopt a Grateful Brand yourself.

Many thanks,

Dane Blackburn