On gratitude:
 

I am on a strict (-ly wonderful) diet of gratitude this past week, and I am not even close to being done with it.
I am deepening my recognition that perspective is everything. That it is up to us to transform our thoughts. And staying close to the incredible truth that EVERYTHING IS A GIFT, its just that many of those gifts are disguised... and they arent even disguised by God... rather they are disguised by our faulty perception. (Nod to free will, here)
As I am deepening this practice of gratitude, I feel an incredible authentic grace taking over my whole experience.
There is nothing better, truly, than feeding and nurturing your gratitude garden (and doing it with sobriety).
Its changes EVERYTHING.
It takes vigilance, but if you get sick and tired enough of your stuckness, or your depression, or your anger... The vigilance comes easier. When youve reached the end of your rope, you WILL find the determination and stamina.... to climb.
Which is why our suffering is a gift... a gift we, in partnership with God, give to ourselves..... sometimes...or often.
Because that suffering pushes us up, inch by inch, tear by tear, boo boo, by boo boo, to God.... when nothing else is working to get us up there to safety.
This is why they say that the only prayer ever necessary is this one: "THANK YOU"
We don't have to thank God for the difficulty... Often we can't thank for that in any authentic way, because quite simply we don't feel thankful for that. But we CAN say THANK YOU for all the good we are ignoring while we are distracted by the bad, or too focused on what doesnt seem to be working.
And in switching your focus, with intention, to the GOOD that you can actually recognize and SEE in your life, a domino effect begins... And eventually all the bad dominos "fall" into GOODNESS, too.
The bad are transformed, right before your very eyes, into GOODNESS.
You begin to see those disguised blessings more and more accurately as to what they really are.
Not bad, but GOOD.
Gratitude is proving to me, once again, to be one of, in not THE, best ways to strengthen faith.

A grateful attitude is the way to go

:thanks

Awesomely written, herc, and very helpful.

I like thinking about transforming our thoughts.

Much of what we do and our perspective on things is just mindset, mindset, mindset. So much stems from our minds...so much starts with our thoughts.

Ever catch yourself telling yourself you need to stop thinking about something that is not helpful and telling yourself to steer your thinking in a better direction?

Or we find our thoughts giving us anxiety? BTDT, got the T-shirt, right?

Yes

I'm a creative person; a creative thinker. But, there have been times when my creative thinking has led me down a dark road. I've realized, however that I can control my creative "bent" and use it for good; for problem solving; for creating better circumstances for myself. Yes, there are some things we have no control over. But there many many things we do have "say" in. We get to choose! How frickin' awesome is that?! We get to say "yes" or we get to say "no" or we get to say, "maybe" or "I'll think about it." Are we coerced sometimes? Sure................but we have the power to resist that. We have the power to say, "No I'm not going to be normal". Oh well. People will get over it and if they don't that's their problem. "Not*my*problem"....