Attitude of Gratitude
When I find myself struggling in some way, whether having difficulty accepting a current situation, having a day that just doesn’t seem to be going my way, or experiencing stress, I feel better immediately when I stop for a moment to identify a few things for which I’m grateful. Having an attitude of gratitude goes a long way, both to alleviate frustration and to attract the things I want.
One thing that always helps me to sit in that place of gratitude is to think of others’ struggles. Regardless of what I’m dealing with there is always someone who is coping with something more difficult. As my compassion for another grows, my frustration and stress dwindle. It becomes easy to laugh at my own struggle. Sometimes I even feel quite silly for feeling irritated or upset when I compare my situation with what could be.
Sometimes the most profound sense of peace and happiness comes from gratitude for the smallest of things. Sure, I’m grateful for my health, for always having more than enough to eat, for having a cozy home with plenty of warmth, for family and friends, and for an abundance which allows me to travel and take time for myself, donate to and help causes I choose.
At times, though, I feel amazing love, acceptance and joy by noticing and being grateful for a tiny flower growing along the creek, a ray of sunshine in the midst of a rain or snow storm, a trip to town in which I cruise through every intersection with a green light. These things help me reorient myself in the big picture: nothing is really that important if it won’t matter tomorrow.
So what’s good about today, right now? What am I lucky to have, to experience, to be able to do? What am I fortunate to NOT have or need to do? These things can be written down or spoken aloud, thought silently, shared or not, but the important thing is that they are acknowledged, and that I feel that gratitude, which will help them persist.