The Perptual Gift of Gratitude

How many times have you been told to be grateful? If you were raised by may parents you were told that you better be grateful for what you have. Interesting how much parents know. That gratitude is a source of your happiness. This is what our video this week is about. David Steindl-Rast Talks about how even though there are people who have everything you could need to be happy. Yet they can and often times are unhappy. That is because they lack gratitude. Then there are people who see to have nothing but bad luck. Everything seems to fall down around their ears. Often these folks see to always be as happy as a lark. Why? because you find them to be grateful. They are filled with gratitude. These folks are often described as beaming with life. They are the eternal optimist. Why? Well, that is because they don’t have fear. Everything about their life is a gift, not a punishment. They are happy to be on the right side of the ground each day. They see that they are always on top of the world. How to learn to live in gratitude isn’t hard. David talks about the three steps to take. Those steps are Stop Look Go. So let’s look at these gratitude steps.

Stop

As a society, we are always moving. The tempo is that of the flight of the bumblebee. There is often the thought that if you stop you will be run over. That thought is a thought of scarcity or a fearful thought. So you want to put on the breaks from time to time. Let the rest of the world rush off on its own way. You don’t have to go at that speed constantly, and if you don’t slow down from time to time you are an old man and no experience to show for it. So At every opportunity stop and pay attention to see the beauty that is all around us.

Look

As the saying goes you stop and smell the roses. Take a gander at the different wonders around you. The FLower growing through the crack in the sidewalk. The sense of wonder on a child’s face as they are exploring the park. The feel of the warm sun and a cool breeze on your skin at the same time. When you look you see what there is to be grateful about. It is hard to see details when you are flying through life at 100 miles an hour. So Slow down and look at the details and wonder surrounding you even when you are in downtown New York City. There is wonder there.

Go

Once you see that wonder allow yourself to the opportunity to appreciate that gift life has given you. Allow a smile and the sensation of love to overcome you. You can feel the different emotions that is ok. You don’t have to show them but experience the emotion fully. This experience is where gratitude forms. Once you have that experience you can savor it each time you remember it. You can say thanks for that experience. Because you did something hardly anybody else did and that is slow down and witness the beauty around you. If you grateful you are not fearful. When you are full of gratitude you can’t have a life of scarcity. So find something to be grateful for and build your happiness one day at a time.   Hands – Photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash Dandelion – Photo by Dawid Zawiła on Unsplash man At Beach – Photo by Joshua Earle on Unsplash waterfall – Photo by Jared Erondu on Unsplash