Life's Secret Sauce

Gratitude is the key practice to transform your everyday life.  Gratitude is the secret sauce that turns our everyday into something magical.  Offering thanks daily is the quickest way to change our mood and perception of our life.  Thanksgiving magnifies the good stuff and makes everything else fade into the background.

I cringe as I think of times in my life that have felt dull and constraining.  I remember stretches that felt like the laundry cycle of a washing machine: wake up, cook, tidy up, change diapers, run errands, read bedtime stories, rinse and repeat--over and over and over.

Living like that can kill you, both figuratively and spiritually.  It is definitely not the space in which relationships grow and expand; new possibilities do not easily present themselves in that place; nor do children feel boundless love coming from their parent.  It is not the place of joy, beauty, and connection.  But it is an opportunity to remake your life.

The practice of gratitude transforms cleaning up the third spill of the day into something closer to the sacred.  Milk spills.  Gratitude changes our perspective.  The spill is not a burden.  We may still be unhappy about it, but frustration dissipates.  Thanks for the child drinking the milk.  Thanks that we have milk.  Thanks that there can be more milk to fill the cup.  Thanks that you're there to care for that child.  Thanks for the ability to clean it up.  Thanks for the cow, and the farmer, and the grocery store.  The list is endless.  

Any and all events in our lives are elevated by gratitude.  The color and energy of joy and happiness are intensified.  We more deeply appreciate good when we infuse our experience with gratitude.  The people around us feel more appreciated and seen when we express our thanks for them and for what they do. 

Transformation happens when we give thanks for the small and big things. Our eyes open to what is happening around us.  Our hearts lighten because we connect with the present moment.  We become fully present to what is. Gratitude is something we consciously must practice until it becomes as natural to us as breathing.

Join jolie in your journey of gratitude. Meditation is an excellent opportunity to reflect and sink into the good.  Also, the Thursday Mom 2 Mom is a great way for mothers to up level their day with little effort.  Please share your gratitude practices with us on Facebook and in person.

with gratitude,
​Julia