Gratitude

“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them. We must learn the lessons taught by the mistakes of others. We must recognize our own shortcomings.”  John F. Kennedy

This week we are exploring gratitude, or the art of being grateful.

I have many things in my life to be very grateful for, as I am certain many of you have also.  BUT do you take the time, each and every day, to note or express out aloud – what you are grateful for?

Last weekend, a group of local people celebrated a milestone – 10 years since we met doing a local leadership course.  It was great to catch up with those who were available and see what they are up to.  Of course, we are all at different life stages – there have been marriages, children, grandchildren, career changers and so on.

One of the participants asked how my health was, and I am happy to say that it is very good at the moment, and I am happy to face the big five-year milestone later this year.  This is a major milestone for many survivors like me.

Whilst the past ten years have had a variety of changes and challenges, I still have been grateful for everything in my life and what has happened.  I try not to focus on just the negative, but on the great things that occur each and every day.  Being a (mostly) positive person does not stop negative things from happening in my life, it means that I can bounce back quicker when things go astray.

I was fortunate to sit in on a client’s psychiatry appointment many years ago and the psychiatrist encouraged the client to list three things that they were grateful for each day.  At first, they struggled with this concept and could only be grateful for their family members.  Now many years on, they can nominate things quite easily.  It is a habit that is well worth establishing as what we focus on, breeds and I would much rather look at the positive side of life.

So, the challenge this week is to try and focus on what you are grateful for and notice if this brings any changes to your life?