Monday, November 22, 2010

Giving Thanks



The Holiday season is now officially underway! With Thanksgiving comes the turkey, accoutrements, family, friends and hopefully many prayers of gratitude, appreciation and thanks. Giving thanks is a quality that everyone would benefit from weaving into a daily practice and a consistent habit. According to Abraham Hicks, gratitude and appreciation are the highest of vibrations, and more akin to the energy of the Universe than even love. I know my life dramatically improved when I made the practice of gratitude more prevalent than my practice of complaining – but really, I had so much great fodder for complaint! I had been dumped, I had no job, no friends, no money, and my health was compromised. Of course I wanted to talk about that. I wanted sympathy, understanding and some help! What I did not understand at that time was what we talk about and think about is what is coming down the pike.

As I was meditating one day, I asked Spirit why my life was not going the direction I wanted it to. I “got” it was because I was looking with regret at my past instead of being optimistic about my future. I realized with crystal clear clarity, I needed to let go of my story and start a new habit - that habit was gratitude. I read that Oprah kept a gratitude journal; I figured if it was good enough for Oprah, it was good enough for me. I went and splurged on a blingy purple and pink journal and sat with it every night to consciously consider what I was grateful for. Some nights I just looked at it with tears in my eyes, life was so hard, and so confusing, it was challenging to think of things to be grateful for. However, I was consistently grateful for the beauty of the magenta and glitter; somehow it soothed and comforted me.

As I made writing in my Gratitude Journal a habit, I started to think of more and more things to be grateful for - and slowly life seemed to move in a more positive direction. I thought perhaps it was a coincidence, but did not want to take a chance and stop! I felt like the lotus reaching up through the darkness of the mud, and gratitude was my lifeline to the Light.

I have been told by teachers I respect that a new habit takes 32 days to cultivate. Now when dealing with clients who are struggling, I ask them to commit to a 32 day process of gratitude. In every situation, their lives change positively and dramatically. Gratitude is a magnetic energy and the more we consciously focus on it, the more we attract things to be grateful for. It is a simple practice that just takes practice. Gratitude an energy that opens the door to miracles, synchronicity and Divine support.

The science community is also getting on baord with the power of gratitide! It turns out, giving thanks is good for your health. A growing body of research suggests that maintaining an attitude of gratitude can improve psychological, emotional and physical well-being. People who feel grateful have more energy, more optimism, more social connections and more happiness than those who do not. They're also less likely to be depressed, envious, greedy or substance abusers. They earn more money, sleep more soundly, exercise more regularly and have greater resistance to viral infections. So, gratitude is good for us physically, mentally, emotionally, finacially and spiritually!


Here is a quote I LOVE from author Melody Beattie: “Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, and confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates vision for tomorrow.”

If you want more money, take time to bless and give thanks for the money you do have. If you want more love, be grateful for every drop of love you have ever given or received. If you want more miracles, be still and sit in gratitude for the miracle of your heartbeat and your breath. Meditating on the quality of gratitude, lines us up with the generous and prosperous nature of the Universe. Live with an open, grateful and receptive heart and keep your eyes open for magical and amazing things!

I now am living a life of beauty, wonder, amazing synchronicity, immense support, crazy opportunity and profound love - and I attribute it to the practice of giving thanks. Have you tried it? If you have and have a story to tell, get in touch with me and share! If you haven’t, give it a shot and let me know how it goes! Happy Thanksgiving to you and may you be blessed with grace, healing, wholeness, fulfillment, prosperity, Divine support and great love.

4 comments:

  1. Two quotes I always remember:

    Gratitude is a Grateful attitude


    You say grace before meals. All right. But I say grace before the concert and the opera, and grace before the play and pantomime, and grace before I open a book, and grace before sketching, painting, swimming, fencing, boxing, walking, playing, dancing and grace before I dip the pen in the ink. ~G.K. Chesterton

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  2. Thank you.
    very insightful and needed.

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  3. Great post. Helps to keep priority's straight, staying in gratitude.
    Do you ever do art workshops in Los Angeles? I see you do in Idaho, a little too far to drive!

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  4. I am looking to do a workshop in LA in Feb. or March! I will be posting upcoming events on my website and Facebook. I hope to see you soon!

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