I’ve been thinking about when and how we stop to relax, reflect, and celebrate the blessings in our lives. I’m grateful for the wise traditions that prompt us to regularly do this together – from holidays, to weekly Sabbaths, to mealtime blessings – these moments create a context that encourage us cultivate gratitude.
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Gratitude has been something that I’ve been intentionally nourishing as part of my golden orbit. So far, it has been the consistent thread that has woven throughout my days over the last month or so – the practice of keeping a “gratitude journal”. Before my birthday, I looked around until I found the perfect receptacle for my thoughts – a pretty red and gold volume - and I keep it by my bedside with a pen on top. No matter what kind of day I’ve had, or what kind of mood I’m in, this practice prompts me to find five things (preferably new) for which I am grateful.
As expected, this practice has been a great anchor to connect me to all that is good in my life. Like mindfulness, and other practices that we’re hearing more about these days – there is accumulating evidence that habits such as these make a difference in how we experience our lives. I think of gratitude as a muscle that gets stronger with use. Exercising my gratitude “muscle” allows me to access all of the positive emotions that accompany this practice – more quickly and more consistently.
There is a great TED talk by Shawn Achor that shares about the effect that gratitude journals and other practices like it have and how they can be used to enhance our lives. If you have a few minutes, I highly recommend watching it.
Whether we are more persuaded by great spiritual teachers or academic research, the message is the same: Gratitude is good for us, and gratitude can be cultivated.
I’d love to hear about your experiences. How do you cultivate gratitude in your life?
