Visual Gratitude - December 2014

Visual Gratitude Journal for the Month of December 2014

It's a new year and my gratitudes for December reflected the feelings that come up as one year closes and the next is anticipated.

I ended 2014 with strong positive feelings for 2015... lots of optimism, a sense of infinite possibilities filled with light. I was excited and looking forward to the new year. I wasn't trying to rush through the last days of the year, but I definitely was more excited about the start of this year than I can remember feeling in prior years.

Here's some of what filled my painted gratitude journal for the month of December:

• The comforts of home as the weather gets colder: hot tea on a cool day, the ability to heat water for tea, being able to heat the house, the smell of home baked breads, muffins and cookies, wood burning stove, warm blankets, and Spring-like days in late Fall and Winter.
• The basics: clothes to wear, having shoes, a roof, sight, hearing, a bed.
• Everyday gifts of life: books, exposure to new things, a working refrigerator, a great dog, to name a few.
• Feel good things: a loving family, the gift of giving, belief and trust.
• The experience of my inner world: clarity, healing, inspiration, letting go, growth experiences.
• and so much more.

Wishing you all a joy-filled, gratitude-filled, and light-filled 2015!!! 

The other monthly gratitude journal images can be found at: Visual Gratitude Journal.

Look for the Good

It's a simple concept...You will find what you are expecting to find in life. If you look for the good in others and in everyday life, that's exactly what you will find. The reverse is true as well. It's your choice.

Our expectations, frame of mind, and attitudes color our world. They help shape what we see and how we experience our life situations. Two people, facing the same ups and downs of life, are likely to see things quite differently based on their individual perspectives.

How would you like to see your world?

Visual Gratitude - November 2014

Visual Gratitude Journal for the Month of November 2014

I love the way gratitude is in the air throughout the month of November. With Thanksgiving taking up the rear of the month, gratitude is on the minds of many and seems to become more of a priority in people's lives. During those weeks, it feels as if the world around me becomes a gratitude bubble. I Love It!!

That bubble effect helped support and increase my feelings of appreciation for the many, many good things in life. But on top of that, there was lots to be thankful for in November, particularly the three Thanksgiving dinners we were invited to and attended. Yes, three Thanksgiving celebrations within one week (on three separate days).

We live on the west coast of the U.S., while our families are all on the east coast. So, spending the holiday with good friends is always special and very much appreciated. We are blessed with wonderful friends who we can enjoy spending time with and who make us feel so welcome. 
 
My gratitude journal image for November is filled with non tangible entries such as intuition, peace, and happiness. I felt particularly thankful for the gifts of sharing a world with others: kindness, support, and friendship, the experience of sharing, caring, and compassion, and being able to give and receive love and comfort. I also included appreciation for passion, wonder, and the WOW moments of life; for understanding, wisdom, focus, and so much more. Most of the "things" I was grateful for this past month are not "things" at all.

Hope you had much to be thankful for last month and I wish you a December filled with that which will tickle your fancy and make you smile!

The other monthly gratitude journal images can be found at: Visual Gratitude Journal.

Visual Gratitude - October 2014

Visual Gratitude Journal for the Month of October 2014

I almost forgot about posting the latest Visual Gratitude Journal for last month. What a wonderful month it was! The days of October seemed to overflow with blessings and reasons to feel grateful.

Among the many "gratitudes" that filled the month of October, were the gifts of the creative process. Creative doors seemed to open and I am so thankful for the perpetual smile I've experienced over the past four or so weeks.

Much of this month's gratitude stems from having taken the opportunity to spend time painting every Monday and doing a quick pencil drawing each day. Here are some of the stand out "gratitudes" of my month:

• the feeling of being in the creative flow, the spark of new ideas, focus and direction
• determination, inspiration, and the feeling of accomplishment
• and I am so very grateful for the joy of drawing and painting, for the paints and the drawing tools, for the time and opportunity to create, and the anticipation of my next drawing or painting session.

Wishing you a Thankful November!

The other monthly gratitude journal images can be found at: Visual Gratitude Journal.

Benefits of Gratitude: A Review

 

There are so many benefits to gratitude. 

In August, I highlighted some of the many benefits of having a personal gratitude practice. To review, here's a list of all 15 benefits with links to the individual posts (or visit Benefits of Gratitude to view all 15 on one page). 

• Benefit #1 - Increases joy and happiness.
• Benefit #2 - Helps shift the focus from life's problems to its gifts.
• Benefit #3 - Helps reduce stress and anxiety.
• Benefit #4 - Helps develop a more positive mental outlook.
• Benefit #5 - Increases awareness of life's many blessings
• Benefit #6 - Helps improve the quality of life.
• Benefit #7 - Helps prioritize what's important in life.
• Benefit #8 - Helps lower blood pressure.
• Benefit #9 - Improves physical and mental health.
• Benefit #10 - Strengthens connections with others and improves relationships.
• Benefit #11 - Strengthens the immune system.
• Benefit #12 - Improves sleep quality.
• Benefit #13 - Strengthens coping skills.
• Benefit #14 - Can help develop greater enthusiasm and optimism.
• Benefit #15 - Makes it easier to forgive and let go of past hurts.

Gratitude Quote - Seneca

"The greatest blessings of mankind are within us and within our reach. A wise man is content with his lot, whatever it may be, without wishing for what he has not." ~ Seneca

Gratitude Quote - Oprah Winfrey

"If you look at what you have in life, you'll always have more. If you look at what you don't have in life, you'll never have enough." ~ Oprah Winfrey

Attitude is everything. It is our perspective on life that drives what we see and experience. The crazy thing is, we may be experiencing the same set of circumstances but filtering it out one way or the other. When we focus on the positive, we notice all things positive. When we focus on the things we lack, we are overly aware of what we perceive to be missing in our lives. In this, we have a choice.

Gratitude Quote - Rumi

"Be grateful for whoever comes, because each has been sent as a guide from beyond." ~ Rumi

"But listen to me. For one moment quit being sad. Hear blessings dropping their blossoms around you." ~ Rumi

Gratitude Quote - Melody Beattie

"Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow." ~ Melody Beattie

With gratitude, we can appreciate what has brought us to where we are right now. It allows us to see the gifts in our past experiences, even if they were more challenging than we would have liked. Gratitude helps us to focus on what we have before us, in the present moment, and let go of all else. And we can give thanks now for what we wish to create in the future and see it unfolding through a positive perspective on life.

Visual Gratitude - September 2014

Visual Gratitude Journal for the Month of September 2014

October has begun (Wow...can't believe it's already October!!) and here I am with another Visual Gratitude Journal to share. I love my growing collection of painted pages and the ability to look back on the visuals of the past 6 months of gratitude.

After a summer of travel, activities, events, and spending time out and about, September was filled with opportunities to get quiet, reconnect with my inner wisdom, and reflect on my thoughts, goals, growth, projects, and passions.

Among the many things I am grateful for in September, were the wonderful experiences of connecting to my:

• inner joy
• inner guidance
• inner strength
• inner wisdom
• inner peace
• and lots of personal insights.

I posted this on The Gratitude Facebook Page this past Friday.

There's so much to be thankful for!! Enjoy October!

All six months of the gratitude images can be found at: Visual Gratitude Journal.

Gratitude Quote - Robert Brault

"Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things." ~ Robert Brault

Our awareness of the many small gifts of life, bless our days with more sustained happiness than the intermittent big events that touch our lives. Those large, and often memorable, highlights give us something to look back on but don't feed our soul each and every day. It's the little things, going unnoticed, that help create the foundation beneath us, the stepping stones of life. Watch for them. They are certainly there...and be thankful for their presence in your life.

Here's a quote from The Gratitude Habit:

"Happiness is not based on the occasional grand things that happen in your life. It comes from acknowledging the steady flow of moments to appreciate."
~Wendy Meg Siegel, The Gratitude Habit

Visual Gratitude - Month of August

Visual Gratitude Journal for the Month of August 2014

August was another month filled with gratitude. I love being able to look back on my visual gratitude posters and see the richness and volume of so much appreciation. And as I look at this month's poster, I am aware of how much more I have to be grateful for than the things I have included on that image. In essence, what I see before me, at the end of each month, is only a smidgen of my gratitude... and that knowledge makes my heart feel so full.

This past month was filled with gratitude for the joys of summer; like gardening and the gifts the garden yields, hiking, camping, concerts, travel, and precious time with far away family. I am thankful for the great weather and all the time spent outdoors.

It was impossible to ignore the beneficial impact of technology on our lives, during this past month:

• We were hoping to go camping for the three day Labor Day weekend but no campsites were available anywhere we looked. My husband called and left a message at a place we have visited in the past, just in case they happened to have an empty space. Later that day, while we were on a 3 hour hike in the woods, he received a phone call, letting him know that there was indeed an empty spot. We were able to book the campsite right there in the middle of the woods. This just wowed me.
• On our camping trip to a lake in California, I was able to give my parent's, in New York, a tour of our pop-up camper and the campsite... thanks to the iPhone and the ability to Face time. They were thrilled and I was wowed once again.
• While we were out whale watching earlier in the month, I was able to capture photos of those amazing animals and share the experience with family while out on a boat in the Monterey Bay. 
• While driving hours away from home, we were able to easily speak to friends, thanks to the miracle of the Bluetooth device. We had a crystal clear connection in what seemed like the middle of nowhere.
•  I am wowed that a phone can be so mobile and taken anywhere and everywhere. That fact in itself is quite a miracle. But, having a phone that takes great photos as well, adds to the WOW factor. Then you add the text ability, music player capability, internet access, WiFi, and this couldn't get much more remarkable. I couldn't be more thankful for the technological advancements that have occurred during my lifetime. (and I haven't even mentioned the miracle of computers, laptops, iPads, Nooks and Kindles and more.)

There's so much to be thankful for!!

Check out my other monthly Visual Gratitude Journal images. (I began creating them back in April 2014.)

Visual Gratitude - Month of July

Visual Gratitude Journal for July 2014

So much to be grateful for this past month. Many of my "gratitudes" were for people who have added to the quality of my life. I am thankful for all those who make me smile and:

• for time spent with new friends.
• for the opportunity of spending quality time in conversation and getting to know people better.
• for the large gathering of 60 or so people at our home and all the good food, warmth, and friendship shared... and for all those who helped with cleanup after that gathering.
• for the kindness of my daughter's coach and his generosity of time.
• for friends who open up their home for fun filled annual gatherings.
• for the generosity of others.
• for spontaneous "get-togethers" with people we love.
• for wonderful and friendly neighbors who I so appreciate.
• for my dentist and all who work in his office who make going to the dentist a pleasure.
• for great friends who love and care for our dog when we are away.
• for the gift of all those great telephone conversations with loving, long distance family members.
• for a loving and supportive husband and daughter and for all they do to make my world a joy.

You may resonate with some of the above. What would you include in your gratitude list today? This week? This month?

Wishing you a happy, healthy, and gratitude filled August.

(About the above image: I painted an 11" x 14" sheet of bristol board and filled it with daily gratitude for the month of July. Click Here to view all of the completed Visual Gratitude images.)

Grateful for Inner Wisdom

Years ago, I was aware of how often I would consult a friend to get input on a decision I was about to make. I would contact the right friend for the specific type of decision. Finally I stopped to wonder why I was seeking guidance outside of myself rather than looking within.

I had the answers...but I was allowing my mind to race with the various options rather than listening to what my inner wisdom had to offer. I was doing this despite plenty of past experience in listening to my inner voice.

By slowing down and quieting the inner patter, we can access the answers we seek...and sometimes even answers to questions we haven't thought of asking. We have the intuition and the inner knowing built into us. We have been taught to trust in the tangible world of information that we can see with our eyes and hold in our hands. We have learned to negate, or second guess, our inner perceptions, feelings, and awareness.

It takes practice and trust to develop the awareness of our innate ability to access guidance.

Trusting...

• our gut responses.
• our dreams and visions. 
• our inner voice.
• that guidance and direction is available to us.
• that the answers will show up and possibly in quite surprising ways.
• the messages may present themselves at any moment...when we open a book to a random page, turn on a radio station, or change the channel on the TV. The guidance may take shape in a conversation with a stranger, on a sign we pass on the road, or while brushing your teeth.

To open the channels for greater awareness and fine tune your reception, practice quieting the mind. You can do this by spending some time each day in stillness.

Visual Gratitude - Month of June

Visual Gratitude Journal - June 2014

I am happy to share my third month of filling a bristol board with paint and gratitude. I do love combining two of the important passions of my life.

These visual gratitude boards give me the opportunity to fill my month with paint and color and then add the many things I feel extraordinarily grateful for on top of that. The foundation of paint becomes the platform on which to record my blessings.

The July poster is already in progress and I will be back to share that with you next month. Wishing you all an excellent July.

You can view the completed monthly gratitude posters at: http://thegratitudehabitjournal.blogspot.com/search/label/visual%20gratitude


 

Appreciate Life

Focus on all that you have, all you have achieved, and all the positives of life itself. This is a path to peace, happiness, and well being. Focusing on the negatives, the unmet expectations, and whatever you feel you lack will never bring you joy, happiness, and a sense of fulfillment.

Grateful for LIFE

Last year, on Day 29 of the 30 Days of Gratitude Photos, I chose to be grateful for Life. The words I wrote a year ago still hold true today. Life is the gift that allows us to experience all the other gifts in our lives. I am ever so grateful for the life I have and for life itself.

This is day 30, and the final day, of the Thirty Days of Gratitude. I am grateful for this past month of gratitude images and the time I have spent writing about them here. I always find that writing an extended paragraph, or more, on something I am thankful for is a wonderfully fulfilling exercise. I highly recommend it.

Grateful for Food

"Food, glorious food." I am grateful for the food I eat each day and for a pantry that is full.

I am grateful for how food can both sustain life and manage to be so yummy. I appreciate the variety of flavors and the way some seem to dance on my tongue. There are many foods that are totally enjoyable to eat.

I am thankful for the energy and nutrition I derive from eating. And I give thanks to all those involved in the process of getting the food from the farm to my kitchen table.

I am thankful to have my basic food needs met and for the ability to easily replenish my supply whenever needed.

This is day 29 of the Thirty Days of Gratitude.

Grateful for My Parents

I am so grateful for my parents. How blessed I have been to be able to call these two loving and supportive people my parents...And to do so for so many years. Wow...what an amazing gift to have years of sharing and caring, of celebrations and special moments, and of all the opportunities to help and support one another.

They have been a support to me my whole life. When something exciting happens, the first people I think of sharing it with are my parents. When I am visiting an awesomely beautiful site, I wish I could share it with them. And when troubled with concerns or worries, I can always find an open and understanding sounding board in them.

I am thankful for having another day, another month, and another year to have my parents in my life.

Check out the gift of the Gratitude Box we gave to my parents.

This is day 28 of the Thirty Days of Gratitude.

Grateful for the Courage to Be Myself

I am grateful for the courage to be me in any situation...to step up and face my fears and fully walk in my own shoes.

When we think of courage. it's often centered around a major feat of bravery, a heroic act. But everyday we each face the monumental task of just being...just being ourselves. The world around us pushes and pulls us in many directions, to the point of not always being sure what it means to be true to ourselves.

At an early age we learn to be people "pleasers." Infants learn that if they do certain things and respond in specific ways, the big people around them will smile or laugh, and even give them a big warm hug. And we begin the journey of taking actions to achieve the desired positive reactions in others.

Then there are the years where we learn to do anything to avoid ridicule and teasing. We don't want to be picked on and we work hard at trying not to stand out. We learn to conform to the perceived societal norms of our environment so we can fit in and be accepted.

Of course, there are always those who are so caught up in fighting against the "pleaser" mentality, they take steps to foster the opposite reaction. They are trying to get people to be shocked, angered, appalled, and incensed by what they have said or done.

In either case, the road to being true to yourself gets muddled. I suspect that many people have a hard time pinpointing the path of their true self. So I say, it is a remarkable thing to find the courage to be yourself...to undo the years of training we've received, in how to act, react, and function in our world.

I am grateful for the courage of being myself.

Be You...you are the only one set with the task of being YOU...and you certainly can do it better than anyone else. And I wish you the courage to do so.

This is day 27 of the Thirty Days of Gratitude.