Habitual Practices
Today I am grateful for phone calls, emails, and texts from family and friends yesterday. I am also grateful for what I have learned about the practice of habitual gratitude.
I joke that I can't call this blog "Habitual Gratitude" if I don't post habitually. But gratitude practice is no joke to me. It is serious business and beautiful work all at the same time. It is a lifeline and good for my health in all realms-physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual.
My longest standing habitual gratitude practice has been to keep a gratitude journal. I have been doing that for over 18 years. Each morning I write down at least two things I am grateful for. But I also often add some thoughts about things I am struggling with myself and prayers for others. It helps me to think outside of myself and remember others. It helps me keep my own stuff in perspective.
This blog, since I began it in late March of 2012, has been a very regular effort of mine. I have well over 700 posts in that time. It has been an amazing experience that has made me a better writer and deepened my own sense of gratitude and the way I look at and live life.
Some others ways I practice gratitude, and would encourage you to try as well:
*do an A-Z gratitude list while walking or driving, or write one down
*take a gratitude walk, noticing those things you usually miss
*pick one of your 5 senses and focus on all the ways it gives reasons to be grateful
*write a gratitude letter or thank you note to someone (for any reason, big or small)
*start a "done" list at the beginning of the day and keep adding to it as the next task is completed
*if you aren't feeling grateful, just try a "like" list at the end of the day (things you liked from that day)
*pause during a hectic time to take a couple of breaths and be grateful for the breaths and air to breathe
The key is taking action, doing more than just thinking about gratitude.
Which makes today's quote from my gratitude journal fitting and a good way to wrap up this post:
"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to
utter the words, but to live by them." (John Fitzgerald Kennedy)
I joke that I can't call this blog "Habitual Gratitude" if I don't post habitually. But gratitude practice is no joke to me. It is serious business and beautiful work all at the same time. It is a lifeline and good for my health in all realms-physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual.
My longest standing habitual gratitude practice has been to keep a gratitude journal. I have been doing that for over 18 years. Each morning I write down at least two things I am grateful for. But I also often add some thoughts about things I am struggling with myself and prayers for others. It helps me to think outside of myself and remember others. It helps me keep my own stuff in perspective.
This blog, since I began it in late March of 2012, has been a very regular effort of mine. I have well over 700 posts in that time. It has been an amazing experience that has made me a better writer and deepened my own sense of gratitude and the way I look at and live life.
Some others ways I practice gratitude, and would encourage you to try as well:
*do an A-Z gratitude list while walking or driving, or write one down
*take a gratitude walk, noticing those things you usually miss
*pick one of your 5 senses and focus on all the ways it gives reasons to be grateful
*write a gratitude letter or thank you note to someone (for any reason, big or small)
*start a "done" list at the beginning of the day and keep adding to it as the next task is completed
*if you aren't feeling grateful, just try a "like" list at the end of the day (things you liked from that day)
*pause during a hectic time to take a couple of breaths and be grateful for the breaths and air to breathe
The key is taking action, doing more than just thinking about gratitude.
Which makes today's quote from my gratitude journal fitting and a good way to wrap up this post:
"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to
utter the words, but to live by them." (John Fitzgerald Kennedy)
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