Getting Grateful

I’ve been thinking about gratitude a great deal recently. I did co-host a yoga challenge called #FeeltheGratitude, which probably instigated this introspection– We’ve all heard the expressions: “Gratitude turns what we have into enough” or “Gratitude leads to happiness” – hell, a Harvard study was released today corroborating a strong link between gratitude and happiness. Don’t get me wrong – gratitude is wonderful, and it can definitely lead to happiness, along with a myriad of other benefits like lower stress levels, a healthier heart, and even a stronger immune system, but how exactly do we get there?

For a while, I tried to force gratitude. When I felt sad, or unhappy, I would try and force my sadness out by bulldozing gratitude in it’s place. Spoiler alert – that did absolutely nothing but make me feel shittier for feeling bad when so many people had it worse than me. Finally, I realized that pushing out emotions was not going to solve anything, I’m a human, I have feelings, and they deserve space.

Guilt problem solved – but that left me back at square one on gratitude. The more I thought about, it the more I couldn’t stop thinking about Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh. I decided to try and be more mindful throughout the day. It started small, walking my dog in the cold, instead of being annoyed that my fingers were losing sensation, focusing on how happy it makes the pup and knowing that I GET to do that for him. From there it started to grow, realizing that I am lucky enough to have a practice, so when I show up to my mat now I choose to be grateful with every breath and movement, taking full advantage of my time there. When I started looking at all the things I am lucky enough to do, and stopped looking at all the things I HAD to do, my life became much more of a gift – and much less of a chore.

Gratitude, is not something that can be forced. It is, however, a practice that can be cultivated. Little by little, when you start to cultivate these positive thoughts and this appreciation for the life you get to lead, the way you experience your life changes.