Yesterday was Thanksgiving Day in Canada. While I try to be mindful of all there is to be grateful for in the world and my life, these past two months have deepened my experience of gratitude. Within weeks or days of one another, four people very dear to me have each discovered they have a significant health issue that requires fast action. All conditions, thankfully, are treatable with good prognoses.
Within the uncertainty, as we waited for test results, next steps and treatment dates, I became aware that my gratitude practice has been superficial…sort of horizontal, like waves on an ocean or the tide, as I go in and out of conscious gratitude (the practice of being grateful) versus an unaware state, going through my daily life doing daily tasks.
Over the years, I’ve done a lot of inner work with gratitude. I’ve recited countless affirmations and examined my pain and sorrow through the eyes of gratitude. The practice of gratitude has helped me be much more present and mindful much more often. I try to notice things around me to be grateful for and appreciate the people and experiences in my life.
Yet, I’ve discovered gratitude is vertical, too. When you go beneath the surface, the ocean is deep.
When you begin to notice, I mean r-e-a-l-l-y n-o-t-i-c-e, how much of life you take for granted, you can’t help but swim in the wonder of it all. Every breath. Every heartbeat. Eyes that see, and with your perspective. Blood that pumps through every tiny cell. Systems that digest, nourish and flourish within you, FOR you. Or how about nature? From the smallest microbes to the gentle giants that walk this earth or swim our seas, there’s so much to be grateful for.
We take so much of our life and experience for granted. So much so that things you once dreamed about, which are now your daily reality, no longer register as special. They’ve become routine or mundane, so you’ve set your sights on something new. And there’s nothing wrong with that. That’s how you grow.
Yet, amid your forward thinking, have you stopped to be grateful for all the dedication and perseverance of your commitment to the life you’ve created up to now? To the people who’ve opened doors for you, walked beside you, cheered you on, pushed you forward, or let you go to follow your own path?
The deeper you go with your gratitude practice, the more you realize there’s no end to what you can be grateful for. The ocean is deep, wide and vast.
Gratitude and appreciation bring you into the present moment, where life is happening — NOW. It connects you with your heart and a sea of Universal Love.
And Love heals all.
What’s one thing you’re grateful for right now?
What’s another?
What else?
Keep going…
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