Bonjour, mes amies!

There’s a buzz going on in the fairy world, where pixies are overdosing on chamomile tea and honey to calm down their nerves. What could possibly have them in such a dire state, you ask? Well, it seems like, once again, a lot of native English speakers in that beautiful blue dot in space called Planet Earth are a little bit confused. And the source of this confusion is gratefulness.

On how it all got started

A few weeks ago, as I enjoyed our nature’s bounty by nibbling on pitted dates, an Earthling named Nani wrote a letter to Oprah:

Dear Oprah, 

I just want to let you know that you are so amazing and should run for President of the United States. That being said, I understand you are very busy, so I’ll get to the point and talk about what’s really important. You see, it grates on my  nerves when people spell the word “grateful” as “greatful”. I mean, what the hell does that even mean? Just typing it here, my spell checker marked it red,  my laptop crashed,  jumped off my desk, and out the window, into our swimming pool. 

Because of this, I implore you that you reach out to your contacts in high places to see what can be done about this. About misspelling “grateful,” I mean. I can always buy another computer.

Thank you very much for your attention, for that free car, and for your book club. Everything you do is an A-ha! moment for me; and for that, I am GRATEFUL. 

Sincerely, 

Nani Chinela

And now, without further ado…

The problem with Nani’s letter is that she sent it to that old Chicago address where Oprah’s show used to be filmed; and as you all know, that talk show doesn’t exist anymore. But instead of forwarding the correspondence to the OWN Network, the mailman sent it to me (he reads my blog and knew I could help).

So Nani, here is the much needed clarification, to make your heart sing with joy, and your newborn babies sleep through the night:

Grateful means that you feel gratitude; that you are thankful; that you appreciate that which is making you feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

Greatful is not even a word. Go read a book (and I say this with love. Reading does help a lot in learning how to spell words correctly).

Alright my lovelies, it’s time for a café crème and a croissant. May you all have a wonderful day, and may life give you love, trust, and a little bit of pixie dust!

Much love,

The Fairy Godwriter