There is so much to be thankful for all year long, but for some reason the fall season seems to be more focused on having gratitude. Having an attitude of gratitude in all things is what helps to keep life in focus; it helps us to realize what is truly important.
Someone once said “It is not happy people who are grateful; it is grateful people who are happy.” And that is so true, if you can be grateful no matter what your circumstance is then you can be truly happy. No matter what life throws your way, finding one thing to be grateful for can make all the difference.
“Gratitude is a powerful process for shifting your energy and brining more of what you want into your life. Be grateful for what you already have and you will attract more good things.” Oprah Winfrey. Being grateful for what you have is a positive step in the right direction. If you concentrate on what you do not then you will never have enough.
Having gratitude can help to shift your perception and it will change how you see the world. Doing this one thing can will start to affect all aspects of your life. In changing your focus you will also start to change yourself.
Alan Cohen said, “Gratitude, like faith, is a muscle. The more you use it, the stronger it grows, and the more power you have to use it on your behalf. If you do not practice gratefulness, its benefaction will go unnoticed, and your capacity to draw on its gifts will be diminished. To be grateful is to find the blessing in everything. This is the most powerful attitude to adopt, for there are blessings in everything.” How true this statement is, being able to find the blessing in any given situation is all based on your perception. If that perception is focused on having a grateful attitude, how much better your life will become.
Gratitude can turn what we have into enough, and even more. It will help turn denial into acceptance, bedlam into order, and our misperceptions into clarity. It will help us to make sense of our past, help today be peaceful, and will enable us to create a vision for tomorrow.
“Gratitude is said to be the memory of the heart” according to Joseph F Smith. What a wonderful way to remember how important it is to have an attitude of gratitude.