This past Friday night, I had the awesome opportunity to be in a circle of women and share a spa experience with them. During the relaxation visualization, I asked them to see themselves waking up tomorrow with smiles on their faces and feeling a deep sense of gratitude for their lives.
I’ve read about gratitude in so many books and I understand just how important it is to connect with that feeling. However, as I visualized along with these women Friday night, I felt it flood through me in such a profound way that I had one of those a-ha moments! Even though I’ve heard it before, I experienced in that moment the knowing that when we are filled with gratitude, there is no room for other contrary feelings. We cannot simultaneously feel sadness, fear, anger, resentment, jealousy, inferiority or any other feelings of disconnection.
Along with the overwhelming gratitude I was feeling, joy was present and a deep sense that all was just as it should be. I was where I was supposed to be with these women who all have rich life stories of their own. We were all thinking of another woman whose physical life may be drawing to a close–knowing that we have all been touched by her presence in our lives. In that moment, how could we feel the anticipated pain and loss when we were experiencing gratitude at our deepest core for the blessings we’ve received from her?
In my own life, I see how easy it is to feel disgruntled over “stuff”–big or small. During the normal flow of everyday life, I can so quickly “latch on” to feelings that leave me disconnected–dissatisfaction, anger, worry, frustration, fear, to name a few–rather than connecting to those thoughts and feelings of unquestionable support–gratitude, joy, peace, serenity.
One way to feel connected and supported is to everyday think of 5-10 reasons for gratitude. And as has been prescribed by many, the best thing to do is to write them down. Each and every day–even better, each and every night before you go to sleep. In that way, you allow that deep sense of gratitude to permeate your body and subconscious mind as you sleep. How can you not wake up the next day with a smile and an overwhelming sense that all is well–all is good–all is as is should be?
I started a Gratitude Journal long ago but then tucked it away in my bedside table. Friday night, while talking with one of the women, I remembered that journal. I promised myself that I would begin again to list each and every day reasons to be grateful. They can be as small as “My family helped me with the laundry today” or as big as “I am alive.” No matter what is on the list, I am certain that I will go off to sleep feeling good! And as Wayne Dyer states in “The Secrets of the Power of Intention,” “God is in good.” When we’re connected and filled with gratitude, there’s no other choice but to feel good!
