If you want a quick reset, look for what you’re grateful for. Gratitude feels so good because gratitude is who you truly are. It helps you to open to life, rather than resist or judge it…
We all feel grateful when something wonderful happens, or when what we were dreading doesn’t happen after all. Gratitude is usually the last thing on our mind when the shit hits the fan. Our mental preoccupations and thought spinning brains lure us in and keep us glued just like endless TV. Gratitude becomes a forgotten practice tucked away with pretty journals, crystals and aromatherapy oils.
I used to be that way, but I have become increasingly grateful for the power of gratitude. Gratitude can often be like a magic wand, transforming my energetic state and wiping the windows of my eyes, so I see beauty and notice what is good in my life.
It helps to know that we live in a vibrational Universe, that everything is energy, and so when I feel frustrated, irritated, and look for what’s wrong, rather than accept what is happening and choose to feel good anyway, it makes a difference.
Feel good anyway. What’s that about?! How can you feel good anyway when you feel sad or angry, when tragedy has just struck, chaos is swirling around you or you’re listening to heart-breaking world news?
You always begin by feeling what you feel. Breathe, feel, soothe. Then, look for something positive about the situation.
I was so impressed to witness how a friend of mine is handling her son’s devastating e-bike accident, with crushed bones and a long haul recovery stretching out before him. It’s the thread of positive observations that is pulling her through. “Thank God he’s alive.” “He’s moving his fingers and toes. He will walk again.” “He’s speaking normally. His attitude is so good.” She has always practiced gratitude and positive thinking and now, while her voice wavers with emotion, her focus on gratitude gives her the strength she needs to get through this.
Gratitude is one of our many powerful resources that help us navigate any of the challenges or crises life may throw at us. It is also a simple tool you can use to shift your energy and focus on what uplifts you.
Whenever you notice that you start to tighten up or think negative thoughts, take a deep breath and choose to focus on what is around you, physical objects, feet on the ground.
Often negative thoughts are about something you dislike that is past or something you fear in the future.
Return to the present moment. Let go of the rest.
Magnify the allure of the present moment. You can even make it playful.
When I wake up with a negative orientation towards the day, I brighten up my mental state while making my breakfast. I feel gratitude for my bowl of oatmeal. How lucky I am! And I get to sprinkle cinnamon on it. Yum. Yum. And I chop up a banana, toss on some blueberries, some walnuts, some yoghurt, some almond milk. My bowl of good fortune is positively glowing. The gifts of being alive dance before me. I feel excited about my day. I know it’s going to turn out well because I feel love in my heart again.
I feel a sense of connection to something greater than myself, that is responsive to my energy and thoughts. We move together as one, focusing on things working out in unexpected ways, sharing smiles, brightening up random people’s lives, as well as those who I know and love.
Gratitude is who we truly are. When a baby gurgles and smiles, it is naturally grateful.
Play around with gratitude and notice what happens. Gratitude helps you to lighten up, and all at once life lightens up, as long as you stay present to catch tiny shifts, as well as stunning turnarounds that make you wonder at the incredible co-creative power of the Universe and your own mind.
Expect a miracle is not only a great bumper sticker, but also a helpful mantra to keep ready to pull out whenever you want it. Remember miracles rarely look like what you expect them to.
Gratitude is a practice that becomes second nature the more you do it.
When you choose gratitude, you open to life, rather than resist or judge it, yourself, other people, situations, events, anything. Then, somehow, what is outside yourself has the space to transform, whether now, or gradually opening towards the possibility of at least you seeing it or them differently.
This article was originally published in Mindset & Miracles on Substack.
Nicola Walker is an Anything is Possible mindset coach, with over 25 years of combined life coaching and hypnotherapy experience. She guides people at a turning point in life, to navigate and fulfill their dreams and deepest desires.
Nicola is the author of the forthcoming book, Joy in the Middle of the Mess: An Evolutionary Adventure on the Quest for Success. One of her greatest joys is to walk and hike in the hills and along the beautiful California beaches, near her home in the San Francisco Bay Area.
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