My family and many families I have had the opportunity to spend time with over the years, including a fabulous evening at a friend's this year, have a tradition of a round table moment when everyone states out loud what they are thankful for. It is a warm and heartfelt moment with friends and family every time, And although I was able to hold back I found myself at the brink of tears when my turn came. This is a common occurrence for me and although I don't know the exact details I understand that the welling up of emotion comes from the gratitude I have and that I am about to share it. See our gratitude, the things we are thankful for, especially those deeper things that you realize if you take more than a few seconds to really consider your circumstances, Those things are what make you realize how much different your life could be if you had to live without them. Recognizing things that you really should be thankful for all the time can make an enormous difference in how you see the world.
This concept I call the Attitude of Gratitude and information about it is readily available in the public domain from many so called guru's. So after you see my few points below go looking if you want more. The point is being grateful changes your attitude, and that changes your thoughts, and those change everything so find things to be grateful for everyday or once a week to keep yourself positive and in a great emotional balance. It is easy to get caught up in complaining and wanting. Be grateful instead.
Lary's Be Grateful guidlines:
- Little Things. - your health, your mind, your ability to walk a block or two, the ability to make change, count beyond 100, and write a letter (or an email). These things separate you from millions of people on the planet. How about the clean kitchen, or the new placement of the couch? Being grateful for what you have focuses your attention on positives instead of what you want or lack. You will only build on positives, and focusing on negatives gets you more of the same by drawing your attention to them,
- Big things-this fantastic Earth we live on. To quote Louis CK, "Everything else for millions and millions of miles sucks." Or maybe parts of it like oxygen and gravity are what you want to be grateful for today.
- Funny things - toilet paper is pretty great, and the fact that farm animals cannot fly is also fantastic and certainly limits car washing and dry cleaning bills. I have a friend who is grateful for waking up every morning, because the alternative is not good. Think of something that makes you laugh and be glad for it. Laughter really is good medicine.
- People-there are people in your life: some blood, some not, that make a difference. Remind yourself to be thankful for what they have given you. Friends and family, Great Grandmother's stories, and best teachers and bosses are always good to remind yourself of people to be grateful for because they have helped make you who you are. Not convinced? Who was your favorite teacher in high school? Why, did they inspire you, challenge you or force you to be better, or try harder? Ok, so now who won the Stanley Cup or the Grey cup or World Series or Super bowl that year? That person you thought of meant more than you imagined.
- Yourself - Always be grateful for who you are. You are unique even if you are a twin. You have things that make you special or different and you should be grateful for you. You hear your own voice the most often, be sure it is telling you the right things.
- The Other Side. This is the hardest one. Things will go wrong sometimes. Completely out of your control you might have accidents, mishaps, job losses, broken things and arguments with people you should love. It's okay. Find the other side. Car accident after work. Are you okay? are others okay? Good, it could be worse. Job loss might lead you to the coolest opportunity in years. Maybe it allows you to start a new business or take a holiday. The point is to see the other side. Broken dishes mean you just might get to shop and replace the whole set. Allow it to be positive and be grateful for the opportunity or experience in your life.
Enough for today,
Thank you for reading!
Lary
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