With the Thanksgiving holiday upon us, thankfulness again becomes top-of-mind.
I was raised in an environment of thankfulness that included saying a blessing over the food we were about to eat, to send thank-you notes for gifts and such, and for small graces like someone opening a door for me or for nice comments, as well as many other examples too numerous to mention.
That was just one of the ways my folks instilled some traditional values and good practices to continue to remain humble and thankful for the blessings we regularly receive.
In an article I read recently (Practicing Daily Gratitude), professor emeritus of medicine and the creator of the Stress Reduction Clinic in the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care and Society at the U of Mass., Jon Kabat-Zinn says, “The little things? The little moments? They aren’t little.” Saying thank you, holding the door for someone, these little moments can change the tone of your whole day.
He says one of the most powerful ways to rewire your brain for more joy and less stress is to focus on gratitude.
Unfortunately, we soon forget in a life full of hurried comings-and-goings, something that should be an everyday practise rather than once a year.
As usual, there is more than enough information out there to encourage us to be more thankful, but it’s in the everyday mindful practice where thankfulness becomes second-nature.
Robert Emmons, psychology professor and gratitude researcher at the University of California, explains that there are two key components of practicing gratitude:
- “We affirm the good things we’ve received
- “We acknowledge the role other people play in providing our lives with goodness
“Most of us know it’s important to express thanks to the people who help us, or silently acknowledge the things we are grateful for in life. Research has linked gratitude with a wide range of benefits, including strengthening your immune system and improving sleep patterns, feeling optimistic and experiencing more joy and pleasure, being more helpful and generous, and feeling less lonely and isolated.” https://www.mindful.org/an-introduction-to-mindful-gratitude/
I feel, even a countenance of a smile is an affirmation of thankfulness. It is so encouraging to cross friends and even strangers on the street sharing smiles. It boosts one’s joy level and even makes a person more optimistic, and can even open the door to making new relationships to be thankful for. By practicing grateful motions, you’ll find that you trigger the emotion of gratitude more often in your own life.
It has been noted that expressing gratitude can strengthen relationships so be sure to let your spouse, partner, friend or family member know when they do something you appreciate.
Have you ever noticed the people with whom you come across using words such as blessings or blessed, seem to show a sense of gratitude? These grateful people that acknowledge the good things in life that others have done for them.
It’s my hope that this Thanksgiving season and all through the year, we can be more mindful to be thankful everyday and in turn knit our community in love and thankfulness.
