I mentioned a couple weeks ago in the blog that I’m reading a really fantastic book with a dear friend of mine (Penache Desai’s “Discovering Your Soul Signature”). It’s broken down into 33 days of lessons or teachings.
We’ve taken more than 33 days to read it because there’s just so much rich, juicy goodness within it.
We text each other back and forth about what it’s teaching us, how it resonates with us and how we can apply the teachings to our own lives so that we can live more fully and with greater ease and serenity.
I digress, the point for today’s blog is to share with you another lesson that has deeply stuck with me, and it happened on Day 21 in the chapter entitled Gratitude.
My friend’s text to me that day is what really hammered it home as she described a life experience she was dealing with and then curiously just decided, hmmm, how about I give this be grateful for EVERYTHING a real effort. How would life be better? And then she did and lo'and'behold, life was better!
Stop and really take that in. Most of us were taught to count our blessings, a.k.a. list out the things in your life to be grateful for. So this might sound familiar, but would you include everything in your blessings?
For instance, on your list, would you include things like an nasty argument with your spouse, or your child slamming their door in front of you and screaming I hate you, or the person who cut you off on your way to work making you slam on your breaks and spill coffee all over your nice clean shirt you pressed special for today’s big presentation?
Ummmm, can I assume that would be a big fat nope?
But what if you were grateful for those events and experiences?
This is probably the point where you’re thinking, why would I even want to?
Penache sums it up this way “When we feel gratitude, we feel better – no matter what it is we’re grateful for…Cultivating gratitude for all things isn’t so much a feeling as a decision. It is a lens through which we choose to see the world.”
He goes on to say “If you think of life as a feast…If you appreciate every morsel, imagine what your life will be at the end of the meal.”
So, want to try it – being grateful for everything? What have you got to lose – more wrecked days filled with anger and frustration and a good ‘ol pity party?
Come on, you know you’re intrigued; admit it. Give it a shot – even just for 24 hours, would you be willing to be genuinely grateful for absolutely everything?
If you are willing to take on this challenge, I’d love to hear how it goes for you and what you experience.
Leave a comment in the blog and I’ll be sure to respond back. And if you think today’s blog will brighten someone else’s day, please share it with them.
If you want to know how the practice of gratitude fits within my Eating Behavior Coaching practice, contact me and let’s talk.
Too often, a person’s challenges with their relationship with food, body image and weight stem from the emotional and psychological realms of simply living in this over stimulated, chaotic and busy world. It can be tough being human and adulting everyday and it takes a toll on one’s health. If you’re suffering in your relationship with food, body image and/or weight and want to explore sustainable solutions that will not only give you relief but also elevate your quality of life, I’d love the opportunity to work with you.
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