“Let gratitude be the pillow upon which you kneel to say your nightly prayer.
And let faith be the bridge you build to overcome evil and welcome good.”
— Maya Angelou
Each Thanksgiving, my family (and oftentimes, friends of mine and my brothers’) would go around the table and state one thing we were thankful for that year. Although, we only did this ONCE in a year, it always filled me with such love and warmth. It brought inside me a feeling of abundance and a knowing that all is okay. It’s not because everything in our lives was perfect, but it was because we brought our focus and attention to what was going right in that moment. It shifted our perceptions of ourselves and of each other.
The truth is that gratitude has the power to change our lives. We all have things in our lives that don’t go as planned. We all have things we wish and hope we had or didn’t have. It’s hard to feel gratitude at times when we’ve lost loved ones, when we’re in financial turmoil, or when our health falters. It is okay to grieve those losses. It’s ok if we don’t have all the answers. But know this: When you choose to focus on gratitude, you open the channels for all good to flow toward you and through you. It changes how you see yourself, your surroundings, and your circumstances. Instead of focusing on the lack, appreciate the small things in your life that you already have now. How have they added to the myriad of blessings that exist for you in this moment?
I hope your Thanksgiving day was full of warmth, love, family, and friends. And through the holiday season, and hopefully beyond, I hope that you choose to invite gratitude into your heart and allow the power of it to grace your wellness quotient. I am grateful to each one of you that visits this site. Its success has been fueled by you!
Many blessings to you and to your families!
Wellness Kriya 
I think what you inspire in me is be more openly grateful. I know that deep in my spirit I carry a tremendous capacity for gratitude, but somehow I’m not sure that I always express it well. Sometimes even one small gripe or complaint said out loud dilutes the positive effect that gratitude openly spoken can communicate. I’m going to be thinking of your words as I go to work tomorrow! Thank you…Debra
Thanks, Debra. I am right there with you. I definitely have struggled with many of life’s curve balls. Sometimes, we just have to put things in perspective, and that’s what gratitude does. It’s not always easy, but we are guaranteed to feel better in the moment. I’ve also heard that a 21-day gratitude journal can show a wonderful shift in attitude.