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Disconnecting for and with Gratitude
Sometimes I am grateful for my phone and computer. Other times … Untethered Gratitude Sometimes I am grateful for my phone and computer and all I can do with the internet at my fingertips: taking in art and music, learning, finding what I need, feeling seen and connected through social media. Other times I feel overwhelmed,…
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Fun Matters
😂 Beaming With Joy You know me. I am so damn serious all the time. Well almost all the time. Especially when I am in professional, work, learning and healing modes. But the lesson that has emerged for me recently is fun, smiles, happiness, great big joy for no reason at all. Or for every…
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Waving Your Flag
Putting it all out there. Loud and Proud Gratitude If you had a flag of your states of being what would be on it? What are you all about? What do you live by? Would your flag declare gratitude or love or peace or spirituality or fun or growth or something else or all of…
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Beautiful but Goodbye
You’re beautiful. I appreciate you. But you’re just not right for me. I Used To Love and Welcome You I used to love this weed you see in the photo with it's delicate lavender blooms and bright yellow stamen. It is a Silver Leaf Nightshade and it grows easily even with no water in our punishing…
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Nothing Was Abandoned
Do I still believe that the secret to happiness is low expectations? Expectations vs. Presence I used to believe that the key to happiness was low expectations. Maybe I still do. Our quote this week by Björk really has me pondering the relationship between being present, having expectations and gratitude. She is basically saying that…
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Giving Weight
I see you. I value you. I hope you’ll stay. Welcoming In Last week was all about releasing. Letting go of that which no longer serves us. This week let's honor all of the things that we wish to welcome into our lives. The objects, the beliefs, the thoughts, the values, the people, our bodies,…
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Don’t Be a Gratitude Pusher
Gratitude is something you feel. Not something you tell others to feel. Feel It or Don't. It's up to You Alone. Today I saw this quote from Paul Ryan: This is one of those moments where we just need to step back and count our blessings. We need to think less about taking sides and…
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Finding the Fun
Sometimes the easiest way to see it differently is to find something funny about it. It’s Not Funny. Or Is It? Some people are experts at finding the humor in situations that just aren’t funny. These people annoy me. Hahaha. But if I’m honest when I am feeling grounded and calm and at my best…
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Could Be Better Could Be Worse
Up and down. Down and up. Could be better. Could be worse. A Blessing from a Stranger at Walmart I very rarely go to Walmart. When I do it's usually very late at night when the other stores are closed. So just before midnight on Sunday night there I was walking the aisles of Walmart.…
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Great Works Started and Sustained
You have so much to offer the world. Tapping Into Your Softness and Strength The rain came thunderous and hard then soft and gentle. Afterward I went outside to enjoy the cool summer air. The light all around was soft and airy. It was the middle of the day but everything seemed so still and…
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Planting in Your Soul
What is planted in each person’s soul will sprout. ~Rumi A Perfect Time to Look Within Today, the day after the eclipse, the day after the new moon, is a great time to look within and get clarity on what you are wanting to plant in your soul. There is a rich tradition of farming…
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Give Your Body This Gift
I almost didn’t share this picture because I was embarrassed about my body. Honor Your Body With Gratitude There our bodies are each and every moment of each and every day. They are carrying us through our lives. We push them when we are busy. We rest them when we can. And we complain when…
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Research Says Just Make It Your Goal
Making gratitude the priority. The Benefit of Making Gratitude Your Goal Neuroscience has found that all humans have a negativity bias. This means that our brains are more cued in to noticing threats than rewards. It means that we will notice, respond to and remember the negative for more than we will remember the…
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Don’t Cover Up Shit with Glitter
I found actual dog shit in my bed! Allow The Shit To Be Shit A couple weeks ago I was talking about Getting Real About Gratitude where I mentioned that things aren't always pretty but that we can still find beauty by looking at the ugliness with a grateful heart. Well that was put to…
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Practice Choosing Those You Care About Every Day
They will feel your appreciation even if you don’t tell them. Gratefully I Choose You There is a great paradox with those we love that the more we have them in our lives the more we get caught up in the mundane details of day to day life and the less we show them how…
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Get Out of Your Perspective Rut
I have always hated that. Another Day Another Opportunity Yesterday I was at Target and making small talk with the cashier. We were celebrating that he was getting off work in 15 minutes. Then he started talking about how much he hates Mondays and how he has hated them his entire life. He really lost…
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Getting Real about Gratitude
It’s not all daisies and sunsets. The Reality of Gratitude Before I started my gratitude practice I used to roll my eyes at people’s gratitude. I mean, come on. Don’t they live in the real world like the rest of us? Where’s the dog shit and the car wrecks and the death? Why is…
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Allow the Sun In
What will bloom if you allow the sun to shine on it? Growing Gratitude Things have been hard. There has been struggle. There is struggle. And though it all you are growing. You are even able to find gratitude throughout it all. I invite you to allow in even more gratitude. As the sun…
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Wise Wounds
That place that hurts. This Isn’t Your Last Wound There is a wound. Slashing through your heart. Or is it your body? Your soul? It screams out to you in pain fresh and bloody. Or the throb of an ancient hurt muted but etched in stone. It begs for your attention. It buckles your…
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And Then the Anger Came
Gratitude and anger. We rarely talk about these two together but … Is Anger the Opposite of Gratitude? If you’ve been following the last three issues you know I have been going through a difficult time. In full transparency I am grieving the loss of a beautiful partnership. This breakup has been challenging. But you…