Just a minute, I need a smile here.
Just a minute, I need a smile here.
The JOYS of gratitude
Gratitude. An amazing word, and it’s time to make your list! Yup, a list of all the things you have that you’re grateful for. Not sure where to start? Here’s a few hints to get you rolling:
Be grateful for your good health (or bad) because it can always be worse! Be grateful for whatever health you have. Got arthritis? Be grateful you can still see, or hear, or move any parts of your body, or still taste foods, or smell fresh cut grass, etc.
Got a job you don’t like but it helps pay your bills? Be grateful, as you could be one of the millions that are unemployed, or those that lost their jobs and were forced into homelessness. And your job helps feed you (until you get a better one).
Got kids driving you nuts? Be grateful for ALL the little things like their good personalities or skills. They won’t always live at home. If they’re adult kids making you nuts, be grateful you still have them alive to make you nuts. Some parents lost their children to death, never to spar with them again, and they’d give anything to have their kids alive again. You still have the chance to work on your relationship with your kids and improve it! (THIS also applies to spouses-there’s always room for improvement!)
Your own list of things you can be grateful for. Don’t stop now, you’re on a roll. Remember, gratitude is in your attitude.
WHY make a list of things to be grateful for? A little known fact is that scientists have proven Gratitude, or the act of being grateful, spurs within us joy. WOW!
Photo by Brigitte Tohm on Unsplash
If you’re not used to being grateful or thankful for the things in your life, like: kindness from others, or a smile, or a gentle hug when you needed it, or a note of appreciation, or the food you have, or your cozy bed with soft covers, or your precious pet, or your eyesight, or the fact that you’ve been blessed with a walker to get around, or your friends and family that care, then START NOW. Like they say, there’s no better time than the present. And that means right now! SO STOP whatever you’re doing(except driving) and mentally list at least three(3) things you’re grateful for.