THANKSGIVING ESSAY - Nov. 22, 2009
The major cause for gratitude is being alive!
The first law of “First” Nature is Gratitude All creatures who share the sacred flame of life have innate ways of expressing this. Watch the raven celebrate a great dinner catch by tossing it in the air, circling around, deftly air-dancing with glee. The sacred Sufi trance-dancers are also jugglers. As they offer thanks for the gifts of life they whirl in ecstatic dances where symbols of these gifts are tossed rapturously towards heaven. They remind us that the joyous moments before the feast, the festivity, the consumption of the gift are what make it most meaningful. The celebration is not in capturing the gift, but in offering the blessing of gratitude for it.
The first law of First Nature is gratitude.
For those who carefully observe, experiencing the thanksgiving of four-leggeds and flying-ones is a gift in itself. A horse that is reunited with a pasture-mate crow-hops and head-tosses with abandon. “We are united once more!” Cat winds herself around your legs, dog wags his entire body—all in thanksgiving that you have arrived back into the pride, the pack, the tribe. Simply this, you are home! You didn’t have to earn it. You just had to BE there.
Gratitude is the beginning, the way and the product of creativity.
Gratitude is the beginning, the way and the product of creativity. It is the simplest way to create Sacred Space, and the most powerful of the Habits of Happiness. When in doubt, give thanks! Especially if you are feeling abandoned, lost or unclear about the next step. When we are in gratitude it is impossible to be victims.
When we are in gratitude it is impossible to be victims.
Direct yourself to list 5 qualities of your own for which you give thanks. Ignore the “swamp-sounds” that might spring up—the “Yeah Buts…”and “What Ifs…?” which create automatic negative challenges. These are the destroyers of Gratitude and self-worth. Instead of being Re-active and letting the “enemy” voices run our lives, let us be Pro-active. By noting and putting into action the qualities which develop a sense of well-being we are practicing cutting-edge, brain-enhancement technology. We are directly utilizing Positive Psychology.
“Unsolicited criticism is always unwelcome.” So, do not solicit the inner negative voices.
Choose a moment from your day in which you can find a blessing. Nothing monumental, a simple moment of contentment and peace will do.
Remember? This morning you pause as the sun is rising, hands around your coffee cup, feeling its warmth, feeling your own pleasure in just simply Being as the day begins.
Surrender yourself to this moment. Feel it! Live it again in your body and five senses. As you recreate it in your imagination your wonderfully adept brain is beginning to install a pattern, a synaptic highway of neurons that retrace this set of feelings. You are already on your way to creating a new healthy habit of thought and a neurotransmission web which you can strengthen again and again throughout your day.
Remember? This morning you pause as the sun is rising, hands around your coffee cup, feeling its warmth, feeling your own pleasure in just simply Being as the day begins.
Surrender yourself to this moment. Feel it! Live it again in your body and five senses. As you recreate it in your imagination your wonderfully adept brain is beginning to install a pattern, a synaptic highway of neurons that retrace this set of feelings. You are already on your way to creating a new healthy habit of thought and a neurotransmission web which you can strengthen again and again throughout your day.
Let go of the concept of “you owe me.”
Remember, at this time of gratitude to give yourself and others the nurturing we all so deeply appreciate. Let go of the concepts of “you owe me,” and “show me kindness first, then I will respond with kindness to you.” Don’t waste your positive energy or time in taking the defensive position. Instead, take the risk. Simply speak your gratitude for qualities which you appreciate in others. Nothing is too small to honor, if it is authentically felt and expressed. Especially, bestow this present of kindness upon those who are sarcastic, trivializing and critical. Just toss them the bouquet of appreciation. At the least, they will not attempt to slight you again without remembering your unexpected gift. And possibly, they will think twice before pronouncing the negative to someone else.
Gratitude is the true Horn-of-Plenty, the emotional feast that can sustain us all. Feed yourself, your family, friends and all those you meet with the communion of gratitude. You may not see the immediate results of this generosity, but you will be nurtured by the spirit of it long beyond Thanksgiving Day! BLESSINGS!
Gratitude is the true Horn-of-Plenty, the emotional feast that can sustain us all. Feed yourself, your family, friends and all those you meet with the communion of gratitude. You may not see the immediate results of this generosity, but you will be nurtured by the spirit of it long beyond Thanksgiving Day! BLESSINGS!