Be Grateful

“The attitude of gratitude is the highest yoga.” -Yogi Bhajan

Its already November! What happened to summer? Life moves so fast! I remember my mom telling me this when I was a kid. I would think to myself, “Yeah right, next week will never get here!” My mom was right! Life moves quickly, slow down and enjoy every minute of it. There are days that it seems impossible to slow down and enjoy because we are multitasking to get everything completed for the day or week ahead. Taking a few minutes each day to practice gratitude can increase happiness, improve moods, and help our relationships.

Gratitude is loving and being thankful for what we have. Gratitude is a daily practice. If we make time each day to find a few things we are grateful for, it will become a habit and become a part of our lifestyle. Gratitude can be practiced anywhere: in the car, the shower, at breakfast, dinner, and bedtime. It can be a family practice. Being grateful can become a part of the morning or evening routine. This is a great time to talk to children about friends, sharing, and giving.

There are many ways to practice gratitude. Here are some ideas:

Simply write down three things you are grateful for
even on a post it note, every evening
stick them to the mirror, cabinet, refrigerator…so you can read them often
Gratitude Journal
writing three things you are grateful for each day to look back upon later
Kids Journal
write or draw 3 pictures they are grateful for. (Can be done together as a family)
Family Mealtime
sharing aloud things each member is thankful for (Our home we share 1 thing that made us smile today and 1 thing that made us sad. We use this one to find something to be grateful for as well)
Just One
choose THE BEST thing that happened that day…just ONE. (This will make you think through your entire day to search for THE BEST thing that happened or made you smile. What you find is that you have pulled out so many good things that you are grateful for in the search for the best. In tougher times, this practice can make the days brighter)