Attitude of Gratitude

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Living a life with gratitude can be difficult. We live in a society where we are bombarded with the idea of wanting more, something better. Always have the top of the line phone, ditch the 40″ television for the 60″ even though the original is working fine, whatever. Our culture is, generally, a throw away society where it is cheaper to buy something new than to have something repaired. More, more, more.

So how do we begin to find a sense of gratitude for what we have to manage stress and anxiety around what messaging we receive from media, friends, and social expectations? Well, there is no right answer, and it will be different for everyone, but hopefully below will offer some good ideas for you to start cultivating your own way to create and attitude of gratitude.

Yoga Sutras – Contentment

The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, often considered the tenets of yoga, offer us the eight limbs – yama, niyama, asana, pranayama, pratyahara, dharana, dhyana, and samadhi – as a way to begin living our yoga in every day life. Among the niyama – how we conduct ourselves – is santosha, which translates to contentment. While contentment is not the same as gratitude, it can help begin to cultivate a sense of gratitude.

Santosha is being satisfied with what we have. Gratitude is appreciating and being thankful for what we have. While this may not sound like a big difference, it is. We may be able to be grateful with what we have, but we may not be satisfied with it and will continue to strive for more over time, which may pull us out of gratitude for those things and begin to resent them. Solely being content with what we have can lead to complacency, and thus living a life without joy or purpose.

If we have both satisfaction and gratitude for what we have, we can find that sweet spot of being content with what we have and finding a place of joy from the gratitude that will help us continue to grow as an individual. And, in turn, help those around us by spreading our joy and love with others.

This is not to be construed as we must be happy all the time. That is impossible. We are humans living in the every day world and have an impeccable ability to question and explore our life and surroundings. There will always be questions, always be searching, and in that comes the choice to move toward contentment and gratitude, or the need for more, and more, and more.

As we embark on the holiday season, consider what you have. As you consider what you have, be curious about your gratitude for what you have. If you are unable to connect both contentment and gratitude, explore what the disconnect may be. Is what you have holding you back? Is what you have inspiring you to be the best version of you? Do you need to spend a ton of money of gifts? Is it draining to get swept up in the expectation of what the season brings? What can you do to create a place of contentment and gratitude?

Here are a few ideas to support your attitude of gratitude this season.

Join A Buy Nothing Group

Joining a buy nothing group is a wonderful to spread the love. You can discard items that no longer serve a purpose for you. Instead of tossing it, you may be able to find someone who needs it. This is also a wonderful way to upcycle or obtain things you need as well. And during the holidays, this may be the only some families are able to obtain gifts for their loved ones.

Gift yourself instead of things.

Consider what those you are buying gifts for really need. When in doubt, ask! Perhaps they need someone to just spend a few hours with them. They may need help paying some of their bills. Perhaps they haven’t had a home cooked meal in a long time. This is also a wonderful way to strengthen your relationships with those you hold dear.

Create with love.

When we create something with love for another person, we share the joy of creating with others and show them how much we are grateful for their being a part of our life. We show them how much they mean to us be sharing a piece ourselves, our joy, our gratitude, with them.

Volunteer or donate.

There are many ways to volunteer, especially during the holiday season. You may choose to physically provide services in a shelter, work in a place where you help distribute goods to those in need. You may donate food or money to organizations that help others, like to a canned food drive or tow collection. Adopting a family is another way to spread gratitude by supporting families in need.

Take time for yourself.

Neglecting our own well being is common during the holiday season. Be sure to take care of your physical body by sticking to your exercise/movement routine and dietary needs as much as possible. If you are feeling over extended, it may be appropriate to decline a dinner party invitation. Take a soothing bath if you are feeling stressed. Take a nap if you are feeling tired. Be grateful for your body and all it allows you to do every day.

It is important to remember life can be a challenge. Not every day is rainbows and puppies, and some people have a harder time than others. What we choose to do with what we have and how we choose to appreciate it, will make all the difference for own state of being, and in turn, will allow us to support others to spread the attitude of gratitude and create a life of joy. Give thanks, spread love, shine your spirit.

 

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