Gratitude brings Joy into our Lives

Some people grumble that roses have thorns; I am grateful that thorns have roses. –Alphonse Karr

It has been a while since I last wrote a gratitude post. This morning, as I read about the gratitude circle prompt, I remembered the journal that I’ve been keeping, where I have been making notes of the blessings that have come my way over the last few days. Well, it was a huge relief to know that there was something there to get me started at least (relief!).

Glad that I have started keeping these notes, I let out a sigh of relief. For a change, I thought to myself, why don’t I do something different today.

As it happens, often, the one person we forget to share gratitude with and give thanks for, is ourselves. Giving thanks to ourselves and nurturing who we are, gives us an opportunity to honor ourselves while reflecting on the personal growths that we have made.

If I fill myself with wonderful words of thankfulness and gratitude, I won’t need to look for these things outside of myself. And, if I become the source to fulfil my own emotional needs, and my heart is full, I will be more than pleased to help fill someone else’s up. That way, I will have more compassion and love to give to others.

So, today, I am writing a gratitude list for myself. Here goes:

• I’m thankful that I have learned to accept myself as I am and nurture myself without guilt.
• I’m thankful that in spite of countless imperfections, I can also be persevering, compassionate, patient, positive, kind and friendly.
• I’m thankful for my imperfections because they make me want to do better each day.
• I’m thankful for the times that I fall and slip back into old patterns and behaviors. It shows me what is still present and what needs to be worked on.
• I’m thankful for being curious about who I am and why I strive to do the things that I do, for trying to improve and be even more effective in all that I do, at work and at home; for the family and the community.
• I’m thankful for recognizing my worth as a caring and loving human being that deserves kindness, respect, dignity, and love from others and that I can stand up for myself when people behave in a negative, brash or rude manner.
• I’m thankful for the challenges that helped shape my positive attitude despite the adversities that came rather early on in life.
• I’m thankful for learning the lesson of equality – of seeing others in the same light as I see myself and having consistently, braved the tide to stand my ground in my beliefs.
• I’m thankful for seeing myself through others so that I can become aware of the things that I need to work on.
• I’m thankful that I have found my voice through work, teaching and writing.
• I’m thankful that I am strong enough to use my voice to help myself and others.
• I’m thankful for the privilege to be in a place where I am able to say no when I want to say no and yes when I want to say yes.
• I’m thankful that I enjoy sticking to a health regime, without feeling miserable about it and most importantly, not giving in to temptations, especially when this is going to help me reach my optimum health goals.

Today, instead of choosing to be harsh on yourself and scrutinise where things have gone wrong, allow me to encourage you to embrace and honour yourself because you deserve to do so. There is a beautiful way to illuminate our hearts without diminishing the light of others. We could all do that.

Have you ever written a Gratitude post to yourself? How did you feel while writing it? Did it help you to see things about yourself any differently than you’d have done otherwise?

(Linking this post with the #2016 Gratitude Circle blog hop hosted by Vidya Sury)