This was a lovely action, although I initially found it difficult to decide who to thank. In the end this was what happened:

‘I want to thank you for coming into my life, giving me unconditional love and letting me love you. You have brought happiness and joy and fun into my life. Because of you I’ve been introduced to a world I knew nothing about, not least music. I’ve learned a lot and met some wonderful people, and appreciated that folk working in a large private international industry, not known for it’s ethical stance, are probably the same as most other people – no better no worse. Had it not been for you I would not have worked and lived abroad; nor would I have made life-long friends with whom I am still in touch. There I learned that good things can happen in the strangest places, and that people can be surprising … in a good way. So thank you – you’ve made a real difference.’

Research suggests that gratitude has a number of benefits.  For example practising gratitude improves psychological health because we focus less on the negative. It also improves physical health, self-esteem and empathy. So saying thank you to someone ‘who made a difference for me’ may well have helped me, as well as hopefully being appreciated by the person I thanked.