Ever noticed how we talk about things that give off good vibes without really realizing what we mean?
Almost a year ago I started a gratitude journal. Every night before bed, I would open it up and write down “Today I am grateful for:” and list the things that I had noticed and appreciated that day.
Here is a list of the things that seemed to make the top ten most popular entries:
1. Sunshine
2. A good hug
3. Music
4. Laughter
5. Acts of kindness - a warm smile from a stranger
6. Sleep and a comfy bed
7. Really connecting with someone and helping each other out
8. Support from my friends or family
9. Learning something new
10. Doing something I didn’t think I could do
I enjoyed this little ritual and I valued the space it created to reflect on each and every day with a little bit of awareness. But on a deeper level this practice has worked far more profoundly than I could have imagined.
Wayne Dyer states that “when you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.” When you reframe how you look at things and extract what you can be grateful for and appreciate, the world transforms into a truly miraculous place, and not only on the good days! On the bad days, instead of feeling overwhelmed or lost in the shittyness of it, I find myself grateful for the insight, the learning or the lesson and for the chance to react differently than before. Oprah says that gratitude is an attitude needed for joy. Well this is practice for fostering that attitude and opening up joy as your natural state.
I can tell you that hands down this little daily practice has, for me, changed the world from a place to survive in and fight against, to one where you realise everything is here to help you and that even when everything seems to be going wrong, there is an abundance of things to be grateful for.
What’s more, based on the Hermantic Law of Similarity – like attracts like. So if you focus on what you have in abundance and what you are grateful for, you are acting like a magnet to attract more of the same to you (the basis of the law of attraction). Epic!
Lastly, gratitude is a brilliant little hack to move you past the ego – you cannot be self-centred whilst at the same time focused on what you are grateful to have been given. It’s one or the other and the simple shift moves us out of the mind and back into the heart. From fear to love. And back into the realm of joy and happiness.
What are you most grateful for today?
[Article also posted on www.gefthemongoose.com]
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