365 Days of Gratitude & Simplicity Day 8

November 17, 2010

*All content has been taken from SImple Abundance. Some content has been shortened for the purpose of 365 Days of Gratitude. 

The Underrated Duty

"There is no duty we so much underrate as the duty of being happy. By being happy we sow anonymous benefits upon the world." ~Robert Louis Stevenson

"I'll be happy when I get a bigger kitchen." 

"I'll be happy when I get a better paying job."

"I'll be happy when I find the perfect someone." 

I call this "I'll be happy when" syndrome. It tricks us. Yes, these things can make us HAPPIER,  they do not plant the seeds of happiness. 

Happiness is not a possession to be prized. It is a thought, a state of mind. 

No one can force you to be happy each day that you wake up. 

Let's adopt a new state of mind. Let's stop thinking that things outside of our control will bring happiness. 

We must tend our inner garden and take time to uproot the weeds of external expectations.

Happiness is a living emotion. We must be willing to pursue it and make it a priority. It IS  intimidating, but be gentle, start small. Climbing a mountain looks  difficult, but if you take it step by step and day by day, you will find yourself at the top and looking up! 

Today's challenge: Today take time to think of 2 things in your past that you thought would bring you happiness - that you depended on to bring you happiness. Write them down. Did they make you happy for long?

Today's exercise: Write down 10 things you are grateful for in this moment.

365 Days of Gratitude & Simplicity Day 7

November 16, 2010

*All content has been taken from SImple Abundance. Some content has been shortened for the purpose of 365 Days of Gratitude. 

How Happy Are You Right Now? 

"Perhaps if one really knew when one was happy one would know the things that were necessary for one's life." ~Joanna Field

How happy are you right now? Do you even know? 

Most women know what make their parents, partners, or children happy. But when it comes to an awareness about the little, specific things in life that bring a smile to our faces, we often come up short. 

In 1926, a young Englishwoman, Joanna Field, began to keep a journal in order to discover what specifically triggered the feeling of delight in her daily life.  

Today's challenge: Today take time to experience moments of happiness. Savor the small, authentic moments that bring contentment. Try a new cookie recipe. Take time to arrange a bouquet of flowers. Sip a cup of tea on the porch and enjoy the sun. Pause for 5 minutes to pet a purring cat. 

Today's exercise: Write down 10 things you are grateful for in this moment. Write down a moment when you savored an small, authentic moment. 

365 Days of Gratitude & SImplicity Day 6

November 15, 2010

*All content has been taken from SImple Abundance. Some content has been shortened for the purpose of 365 Days of Gratitude. 

Standing Knee-Deep in a River and Dying of Thirst

"The thirst after happiness is never extinguished in the hear of [woman]. ~Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Kathy Mattea sings of friends who had been taken for granted, sweethearts she had known, and a wonderful world of strangers just waiting to make a connection with us (while we turn our eyes away)

There is so much we are taking for granted. We must try to stop living unconsciously. 

The revelation that we have everything we need in life to make us happy but simply lack the conscious awareness to appreciate it can be as refreshing as lemonade on a hot summer day or as startling as cold water being thrown in our face. . 

Are you going through your days parched and empty, when you are really standing knee-deep in the river of abundance? 

Today's challenge & exercise: Write down 10 things you are grateful for in this moment. 

365 Days of Gratitude & Simplicity Day 5

November 14, 2010

*All content has been taken from SImple Abundance. Some content has been shortened for the purpose of 365 Days of Gratitude.

The Woman You Were Meant to Be

"Many women today feel a sadness we cannot name. Though we accomplish much of what we set out to do, we sense that something is missing our lives and fruitlessly search "out there" for the answers. What often wrong is that we are disconnected from an authentic sense of self. ~ Emily Hancock

Has this ever happened to you? You are washing your face, and sudden you do not recognize the woman staring back at you. "Who is this?" you ask the mirror. No reply. She looks vaguely familiar but bears little resemblance  to the woman you were expecting to see there. Psychologists call this a "displacement of self," and it usually occurs during times of great stress. (Ha! Isn't this everyday?) 

Perhaps our melancholy is that we miss the woman we were meant to be. We miss our authentic selves. But the good news is that even if you have ignored the overtures for decades ("wear red" "cut your hair" "study art in Paris" "learn the tango") your authentic self has no abandoned you. 

Start listening. 

Today's challenge & exercise: List some of the things you've ignored your authentic self saying to you in the past. What things have you avoided pursuing because you were not able to silence the world and listen to yourself? 

Write down you gratitude for the day.

Gratitude: How's it going?

Just checking in on those of you following along with the extensive version of 365 Days of Gratitude. 


If you started with me, we are on Day 4. No problem if you didn't. I was just telling a friend that the great thing about everyone starting at a different time is that this activity never really ends and THAT is my goal. Spread the word, share the gratitude, see what happens. 


I'm so thrilled that in one week so many people have joined in a an activity that I thought might be too much for most. I see people sharing my blog site, sharing the FB group, tweeting, and exchanging gratitude. 


Bottom line: No matter what happens to you, what you're going through, how you feel about yourself or others, there is always SOMETHING to be grateful for. 


Just like learning to ride a bike, use a new computer or phone, or learning to walk or talk - practice, practice, practice. 


Most times our minds don't get the same practice that we got when we were younger. Teachers, parents, friends would challenge us or teach us and so we were always using our minds. If they weren't challenging us, we were probably challenging them. 


Then came adulthood, kids, jobs, chores, responsibilities, lack of sleep, health issues and so we get bogged down with that and our minds are on a continuous rotation thinking of all those same things day after day. 


I needed the challenge again. I needed to think outside of my regular box. I needed to see that even in my thirties all things are possible - anything can happen. I needed to be reminded that in the day to day routine, I have so much abundance in my life that is more than surface deep. 


So - how are you all doing? 
Did you get a journal to write down your gratitude and see them in black and white in your own writing? 
Are you learning how to stop and breathe? 
Are you writing down your questions, hopes, and dreams? 
Are you posting on FB, 365 Days FB group, or twitter? All of them? 
How many people are you influencing and have joined in this activity b/c of you? 
Are the days, challenges, and activities too long or are you finding you have 5 minutes to read, write, and be thankful? 


Post a quick comment, question, or thought. 


What a legacy that will be for us to leave with our loved ones, children and friends. 


"Because a thankful heart is a happy heart." 

365 Days of Gratitude & Simplicity Day 4

November 13, 2010

*All content has been taken from SImple Abundance. Some content has been shortened for the purpose of 365 Days of Gratitude.

This isn't a Dress Rehearsal

"When you perform . . .you are out of yourself - larger and more potent, more beautiful. You are for minutes heroic. This is power. This is glory on earth. And it is yours, nightly. ~Agnes De Mille

Like an actress conserving her creative energy and focus for opening night, we hold back. Perhaps you save the pretty china for when company comes; perhaps your rarely dress up when home alone. 

It does take more effort to set an inviting table, but enhances our experience of eating. 

We all feel better when we take those few extra minutes to fix our hair and put on makeup, but what's more we act different. 

Today's challenge & exercise: Find something and give it an extra 5 minutes. Table setting, getting dressed, cooking an new side dish. 

Write down you gratitude for the day.

365 Days of Gratitude & Simplicity Day 3

November 12, 2010

*All content has been taken from SImple Abundance. Some content has been shortened for the purpose of 365 Days of Gratitude.

Simple Abundance: The Inner Journey

simple, adj. 1: without embellishment; 2: clarity of form and thought; 3: fundamental

abundance, n.1: an ample quantity, profusion; 2: wealth; 3: plentifulness 

simple abundance, 1: an inner journey; 2: a spiritual practical course in creative living; 3: a tapestry of contentment

Today's challenge: Today become aware that you already posses all the inner wisdom, strength, and creativity needed to make your dreams come true. This is hard for us to realize because our personal power gets buried so deeply beneath the bills, the dirty laundry, chores, running kids to and fro. Somehow our perceptions are flawed to conclude that happiness and fulfillment come only from external events. We have to learn to be catalysts for our own change. 

Today's exercise: The six principles to use as a guide for us over the next year. Read them, add them to today's journal entry. 

1. Gratitude - doing daily spiritual and mental inventory reminds us that we are rich

2. Simplicity -clear out, pare down, realize we only need the essentials; with simplicity brings..

3. Order - both internally and externally

4. Harmony - provides inner peace 

5. Beauty - With #1-4 we realize the beauty in even the simple things

6. Joy - #1-5 opens the joy in abundance

Be still. 

Write down you gratitude for the day.