Cultivating a Heart for Gratitude - Mindful Moment Monday

Hello All,

Welcome to another Mindful Moment Monday.

Today we are giving thanks. The simple act of gratitude can change someone's day and shift our own perspective. Lucky for us, giving thanks, is a practice that can be cultivated.

Our practice today will focus on a thankful mind, heart and an attitude of gratitude.
Finding a comfortable position, close your eyes.
Thank you earth for supporting me as I sit.

Take a deep breath in and feel the breath naturally leave your body.
No force, just flow.
Thank your breath, for this incredible act that occurs without me needing to even think about it.
Thank you lungs for carrying oxygen to my body.
Thank you for sustaining my life.

The benefits of gratitude are both physiological and psychological.
Giving thanks helps boost our immunity, lowers our stress, slows neurodegeneration and lowers our blood pressure.
Gratitude increases our optimism, boosts our mood, creates better relationships and stronger bonds. It also fosters calm and builds security in relationships.

On this next inhale, imagine a family member or friend. Keeping that image, with your heart, send them a smile and sincere “thank you”.

Hold the image of their face in your mind and let gratitude emanate from your being. Let them feel how grateful you are for their friendship, love and kindness.

Feeling your breath, connecting to your body, sustaining gratitude.

A grateful heart can help us to connect to something bigger than just our individual self. It helps us to connect to other people, nature, a higher power, the Universe. Giving thanks fosters positive emotions and increases our happiness.

We can look to our past and relish the good experiences and give thanks. We can also look to the challenging situations and with greater clarity give thanks for what we learned.

Taking a deep breath in, think of a past experience. This could be a joyful and positive memory, or a circumstance that was difficult. Gratitude can help us with facing adversity. Holding the memory in your mind, connect to your body, connect to your breath. And in this moment, see if you can give thanks. Share gratitude for those in the memory with you. See if you can give thanks to yourself for making it through a difficult time. Or gratitude for an amazing experience.
I invite you to whisper softly, “Thank you, thank you, thank you”.

Releasing the image, come back to your breath.

Looking to your future, gratitude helps us to feel hopeful, optimistic.
Take a moment to think of a future event that you’d like to experience. Notice where you are, who you’re with, really go into the moment. Holding the vision in your mind, smile, feel the power of gratitude for your future desires coming true and whisper again, “thank you, thank you, thank you”.

Release the image and again, come back to your breath.

In the cultivation of a grateful heart, we have many possibilities for practice.

Keeping your eyes relaxed and closed, envision yourself writing a thank you note to someone. Feel how good it feels to write your thanks to that person. And then, imagine the surprise, joy and appreciation they feel as they read your words of gratitude. This is gratitude multiplied!

We can offer a silent or mental “thank you” to a passerby or when we feel too shy or unable to vocalize. A smile or nod of the head with this mental gratitude speaks volumes. A sincere heart can emit gratitude and appreciation that can be felt just by energy alone. Give gratitude freely and often!

Continuing to feel into your body, letting the gentle flow of your breath ride its natural rhythm.
Giving thanks for this simple act of Being.

We can keep a gratitude journal, count our blessings, share them with others, pray and meditate on gratitude. The more we practice, the more easily it flows and the more abundant gratitude becomes. There is no shortage of gratitude! The more you give the more you receive!

Let us give thanks for our bodies that carry us through the day.
Let us give thanks for our breath that gives life to our bodies.
May you give yourself thanks for taking this time to rest your mind and settle your thoughts.

And in this final moment, I am thankful for you.

As you continue on your day, may you find ways to express gratitude. May you feel the power of a grateful heart. May you gift yourself and others with an attitude of gratitude.

I am grateful for you! And a heartfelt thank you for joining me today.
As always, with love from my heart to yours.