The Gifts of Gratitude
“You simply will not be the same person two months from now after consciously giving thanks each day for the abundance that exists in your life. And you will have set in motion an ancient spiritual law: the more you have and are grateful for, the more will be given you.” ~ Sarah Ban Breathnach
It was almost 2000 years ago that the Roman philosopher, author and naturalist Pliny the Elder said, “Home is where the heart is.” Think about that! We must innately resonate with the “home” and “heart” connection for it to have survived so many generations.
Therefore, if our home is a representation of our heart then it may help to ask, what lies within them?
For example, I recently did a presentation on color research, and as I was preparing realized how as a teenager my heart was angry, which was represented in the red and black I used in my bedroom decor, and in my art. Sadly those two colors were also reinforcing what I was feeling; anger and sadness. Had I known better at the time, I could have more temporarily used those colors as I made some simple changes that would have supported the process. I could have used them to move me through what I was feeling as a means to open to something new and healthier.
Our range of feelings will vary throughout our lives and there is great healing in working to understand what they mean in real time as we proceed through them. Yet, I think how beneficial to work with the cycles of life to reassess who we are and ask, does what is happening in and around me truly represent who I am?
As I write the full Moon is entering Capricorn. Although it means different things to each of us as a result of our personal astrology, from a mythological perspective it reminds us to consider what types of emotional and practical structures we are developing.
One of my favorite authors and interior designers, Alexandra Stoddard says, “Every house or apartment has an energy, a personality, and integrity. Houses have character…Houses are alive; they breathe the life and health of their inhabitants.”
Similarly, the late Norman Vincent Peale also spoke to this in that our homes and everything in them represent an energy. Take a moment to ponder what is in your heart. What do you want your home and heart to represent? If you were to give your home a name, what would it be? Does what your home represents please you at this stage of your life? Does it evoke a feeling of gratitude? If not, I invite you to embrace an attitude of gratitude!
Our homes not only let others know who we are but also represent a feeling and a comfort. If our “heart” is our “home”, could we do more to make our space one of healing and love? These don’t always have to be huge changes. It could be the addition of a plant, photographs from happy times, or a change in the color of our walls or window treatments, anything that gives us a sense of appreciation for being here – because the fact that we are still here and breathing, is both a incredible miracle and a gift.
Years ago, when I designed the first drafts of the “Me + U” Interactive Journals which includes a daily page to express thankfulness, I wasn’t aware of the research on gratitude. I just knew from my own experience that incorporating it into my daily practice made me feel better. I felt then, just as I do today, that regardless of how cumbersome our days may be there is always something to be grateful for.
There is a library of research on the practice of gratitude but I don’t want to go into that here. I want to encourage you to practice it and see for yourself what gifts gratitude can bestow upon you...
And remember:
Every moment the universe is showing us something if only we’re aware. Do you see the signs?
© Cathi Curen 2017