THE GIFT OF GRATITUDE
The stressful and relentless routine of life’s daily activities can wear us down when our “To Do” list of regular chores is too great. Over-working leads to overwhelm, where we struggle to get anything done properly. We can feel quite depressed about our life and start to have a range of health issues impact on us.
It can be a challenge to remember the purpose and wisdom that sustains us through our daily work because stress creates reactivity and throws us off balance.
Without a spiritual perspective life can lack meaning. When we grapple to make sense of our world, we need a way to ‘ground’ ourselves to stay real and authentic.
Gratitude for all that we are, in any given moment, helps us to remember what’s important.
It is vital to understand that who we are, what we do, and what we have are only meaningful when we are grateful for our life.
Our daily lives are often over-stimulated and stressful, as our time management is burdened and our coping skills are challenged. We perform many roles, as workers, parents, partners, and children. It is a surprise to us that we manage our lives as well as we do. We can become upset by circumstances, disagreements, delays, financial worries, work pressures and family expectations.
Any number of difficulties can arise to tip us off balance, and remind us of our human fallibility.
When we react to an upset, it’s difficult to gain a larger perspective because our focus is on the reaction that triggers us. We get caught up in denial, blame and defenses, and forget that all situations bring gifts, often in proportion to the degree of difficulty. When we rise to our potential through challenges, we are our most powerful.
It is difficult to stay healthy, with so much pressure upon us and so little time to sit back and process our well-being. We forget who we are, and if we allow our ego to take control, we are denied deep connections to life.
Gratitude comes from looking within and appreciating the gifts from the tough stuff.
Modern approaches to science, such as Quantum Physics are drawing links between Spirituality and Science, asserting that we are all one, and made of the same substance as stars. This reminds us that we need to care for ourselves as well as our community if we want to feel a sense of connection with our world.
Water is a conductor of emotion, and because our bodies are composed of 70% water, happiness is vital to our health and that of the planet. We have a responsibility to future generations to value our environment and nurture our bodies.
If we are judgmental of others, we are critical of ourselves.
Therefore, we must be accountable for what we think, say and how we behave, for our thoughts create our reality. As conscious souls we can choose joy or misery.
The gift of gratitude can appear as ordinary as enjoying the sight of a perfect green leaf or the vibrancy of an exquisite flower. It is powerful to count our blessings for the ordinary, to never take anything for granted, to appreciate what is right now.
The satisfaction of gratitude permeates deeply into our hearts and souls.
It stops us craving new fixes, and being envious of others. We have much to be grateful for, regardless of our circumstances and appearances.
Nelson Mandela was a great example of someone who never gave up in the face of his overwhelming challenges. In spite of being imprisoned for many years, he continued to grow through his experiences. Throughout his life, and following his release, his gratitude and forgiveness inspired many across the globe.
Gratitude does not remove our striving for a better world. It does not mean we have to accept low expectations for ourselves. In fact, gratitude enables us to vibrate at a higher spiritual frequency, as well as helping us to be more loving and purposeful in our lives.
Rather than judging, we can feel compassion and neutrality.
We all have our spiritual blueprint for our ‘mission’ on this earth plane. We each develop at our own rate, and are valuable for the contribution we make, regardless of the contradictory story our egos might tell us.
Gratitude comes from our heart, not our head. The warmth of our deepest gratitude feeds our soul’s connection to the Divine, enabling us to forgive ourselves, as well as others, and to extract meaning from life. These lessons give our lives a richness and understanding beyond our physical comfort.
There is nothing wrong with accumulating wealth, property and possessions: it is when we place their importance over and above our loved ones that their value is tipped out of balance. At the end of our lives we are sustained by the relationships we have and remembered for who we are, not what we have.
Gratitude anchors us in a satisfying way to our reality.
When we are our highest expression, we lead by example. We provide positive role modeling for our fast-developing children to deal with a complex world that runs at a frantic pace.
When we depart from this earth, we take only our souls. At best we have been loved unconditionally by our friends and family. Our passing highlights our contribution to this life, and hopefully we have been an inspiration to future generations.
The gift of gratitude is powerfully affirming, and increases our appreciation for the opportunity to learn our lessons on this earth. Wisdom grows from our experiences, good and bad. The more we are grateful, the more in touch with our essential life purpose we become.
To cultivate your gratitude, start a regular journal where you write down five reasons to be grateful every night before you sleep. This simple process gets you in touch with a powerful connection to your values, and encourages you to enjoy being yourself.
