To Focus on Gratitude...

To focus on gratitude, has the power to shift our inner and outer experiences.

As I sat down this morning to lament in my journal about not getting good sleep last night and to try to find some inspiration for the day, I took a moment to look out the window hoping to gather my thoughts. What I saw was truly a magnificent morning sky. Because I took the time to really see it, I forgot about not feeling my best. Here lies the power of gratitude. I decided to focus on the beauty in life that I'm grateful for rather than the challenges. Like it always does, the challenge lost at least a little bit of its power and I am ready to face the day with the qualities that come with gratitude... greater contentment, hope and joy.

Life is chock-full of inspiring bits and pieces that each of us can collect and string together like a crystal necklace. The important thing for me is to keep looking for those bits as a practice rather than waiting for happy accidents to make me feel better. What we focus on is predominantly what we will experience. Because gratitude does carry contentment, hope and joy, this is what we experience when we walk through life with an attitude of gratitude. You'll also have more of these qualities to share with others. Happy Thanksgiving!!!!