Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude make sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.
– Melody Beattie
I started reading a book about 6 months ago called Simple Abundance. It is a book of daily essays that I fell upon while waiting for a spa appointment. One of the first essays discussed starting a gratitude journal. It was a simple process, so I decided to give it a go. Basically is consisted of writing down 5 items every day you are grateful for.
When I first started I have to admit that somedays it was tough to write down five items that I was grateful for, so I wrote down the basics: health, family, home etc. Other days my page was filled and the items just poured out. As the months have passed I have been surprised and how hopefully and content I have felt. I have been focusing more on the abundance rather than the lacking in my life.
I think that we get so caught up on the negative items in our life and the things that we don’t have that we forget how truly blessed we all are. As I have been traveling to amazing countries this year- you see and meet so many people that have so much less than us, but are so happy and content in life.
It is a simple process and I think it is something that everyone should try for a few months, so go and pick a pretty book- something inviting to you and start writing down 5 things a day you are grateful for- you will be amazed at the difference it will make in your life.
The Johnsons 