Here in the United States, we're celebrating Thanksgiving this week.
As I stop to reflect on the past year, I realize just how much I have to be thankful for - challenges and all.
No matter where you live, what you celebrate or how, taking a moment for appreciation and gratitude can really put things in perspective - and positive light.
It hasn't been a particularly easy year for me. It's been full of loss and challenges that, at times, brought my life to a screeching halt. Many of which turned out to be powerful turning points, and a serious motivation to execute positive change...
This morning I committed myself to an exercise in gratitude. I made a list of things I am grateful for, and all the wonderful things in my life that I appreciate so very much. I'll confess that it didn't come easy at first, but in the end I had 20 very powerful statements staring back at me.
Interestingly, it was some of those bigger challenges that resulted in the things I am incredibly thankful for now. Life has a way of pushing you in the right direction, even when it's uncomfortable - or downright painful.
I'm thankful this year is coming to an end, LOL. 😀 I am very much looking forward to a fresh start in 2013. And while I am grateful for the challenges that have brought me where I am today, I am certainly hoping for a less challenging year ahead. 😉
Gratitude is powerful. Even when life isn't being kind, it pays to appreciate the positives. Or even to appreciate the challenge at hand, knowing it will shape you into a better person and lead you in a better direction.
I encourage you to try the exercise in gratitude. It's amazing how it can change your perspective and affect your attitude, and how much it will motivate you to achieve even more things to be thankful for in the months and years to come.
For those of you celebrating, I wish you a beautiful Thanksgiving Day!
May your life be full of love, happiness and success.
Best,
About Lynn Terry
Gratitude is a great expression as you state. I remember Jim Tressel talking about gratitude at a Christian breakfast some 10 years ago after he won the national championship.
Happy Thanksgiving, Lynn! And to the whole community here, that celebrates, that is. Happy Beautiful Day to everyone! A gratitude list is a very good idea, indeed! 😉
Lynn,
I'm thankful for you and everyone in the elite forum. I'm grateful that I have such a huge number of friends back in Ohio whom I miss dreadfully now that I'm in Arizona. I appreciate the incredible sunsets against the western mountain range in Tucson. (Haven't yet learned the name of that one as there are, like, 5 of them!) I'm thrilled, but also a tad apprehensive, about the adventure ahead of me in my new life in the Southwest USA, not the least of which is finding an affordable home in the so-called resort where my sister lives. (It's a fancy name for an RV and manufactured home park, although it's supposed to be 'the most popular resort in America.') I'm filled with gratitude for my beautiful, talented daughter who drove to Ohio for a week to help me prepare for my move, even though she is facing a move of her own, and for the generosity of my sister, who is tolerating having me stay with her as I search for a home. I'm unabashedly speechless at the gargantuan efforts of a long-time friend in Ohio, who volunteered to help me sell, donate or otherwise disseminate the "stuff" (the technical term) leftover after the movers came and I had packed for my flight. I can't begin to tell you the effort she has already put forth on this project. There was a distressingly huge amount of miscellaneous to be dealt with, not the least of which was stuff I felt I couldn't live without but had no room in my luggage. I'm going to be the USPS's best friend, I think. And lastly, I'm excited that a business consultant has given me a clear direction for launching my writing for the tablet market. You'll be hearing more about that in the next 30 days! Thanks be to the Greatest Giver who is also the Greatest Gift.
Deb
Hello and a Happy Thanksgiving to all.
Gratitude is indeed very powerful, a necessity, and I try to remember to count at least one blessing per day, every day.
Along with the more obvious boons of gratitude, the counting of blessings, etc., I've also discovered that forgiveness soon follows much more easily, as needed.
Happy Thanksgiving all both public and private Clicknewzr's(new word, I just made up) along with Super Mod Angie and our most esteemed Super Affiliate and all round fantastico person by the name of Lynn Terry.
happy thanksgiving to all...family first 😉 god bless
Happy Thanksgiving Lynn. God Bless you and show your life with lots of blessings.
Hello Lynn
Happy thanksgiving to you. Sometimes life can be tough. But being thankful for the things you do have (instead of worrying about the things you don't have) can always put things into perspective.
Happy thanksgiving and hope we all have a far better 2013.
Clare
I'm sitting here wondering how I missed this post! lol I certainly hope you had a great Thanksgiving Lynn. 🙂 And also hope your Christmas is even better!
Challenges make you a better and stronger person. This year has not been an easy year for me either. I've made a few hard decisions and I have a couple more to make the beginning of the new year. 😉 A new website is one of them.
Wishing you a safe, bright, prosperous and happy new year! <3
Also looking forward to taking a long nice break from online work in a couple of days. That always puts a whole new perspective on things. 🙂 For the most part of December I won't be online ahh 🙂 lol
What I meant to say was I'll be offline for most of December LOL 🙂
Ah I did not know about the thanksgiving in your country.
I really enjoyed reading it..Thank you 🙂
Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Belated Thanksgiving to you, Lynn, and the whole CN gang! I don't know how but this just came to my inbox this morning (Monday after Thanksgiving). But I'm so thankful to be a part of this amazing group of cyber-friends. Lynn, you expressed Thankfulness and Gratitude so eloquently that I found myself in tears are one point. (no, nothing in my eye and certainly not unusual of late). 2012 has been a difficult year health-wise for our family, and I'm already aware that 2013 will hold it's own challenges. But that is how we learn and morph, and grow up - regardless of our age. Then we glance back and are amazed at our endurance and achievements.
We should practice appreciating successes EVERY DAY, though, not just on big events, like holidays. (I'm pointing my finger at myself here...) I have a friend in New York who keeps a daily Success Journal. No matter how tired she is at night, she writes in her Success Journal. Sometimes that day's successes are big, sometimes small, sometimes huge business decisions, sometimes tiny steps - forward and even backwards. On those days when she thinks she has nothing to write, she begins anyway....often to end 3-4 pages later with a wonderful peace in her heart and ready for sleep. Most significant, though, are days when she is struggling with a big decision or a circumstance which needs important attention and action. She doesn't have an answer when she gets in bed and picks up pen and paper, but she begins anyway. Several pages later, she realizes her frustrations, anger and confusion have literally morphed through her pen to the perfect answer! Her positive energy and reflective state of mind in the exercise leads her to the actual solution.
She says keeping her Success Journal has been life-changing and these changes, growth and successes have been easily apparent to her friends. It is quite inspiring, actually, how her business is evolving.
I don't make New Year Resolutions, but I think this year I will start my own Success Journal in 2013. I want to be more aware and appreciative of not just the big successes but even the tiny steps and experiences along the journey. Happy Thanksgiving and Great Success to you all for next year and beyond!
I so enjoyed your kind words, nice wishes and thought-provoking comments. The success journal is a great idea, Sherie! I hope you all had a wonderful week, and a beautiful holiday. I really enjoyed taking the week off from work, but am super excited to be back at it! 😀 *cheers*
We should make thanks every thing we have done because some of them gives us success and some gives experience .Best of luck to you for your activities in next year
Finally the year has come to an end and we will get the time to enjoy our party of Thanksgiving.It will be an awesome time to spend together.I am very excited and at the same time thankful to my Lord for blessing me abundantly and giving me all his special graces.
Happy Thanksgiving to all.Cheers!!!!!!!!I have been waiting for this time when we can celebrate together.Actually we have decided to celebrate this thanksgiving for five days and we have organized different programs everyday which include dance, sports, music and many more.
Happy Thanksgiving to all, especially to you for contributing and sharing all your informative and valuable articles with us. Gratitude is indeed very powerful, good post, thanks for sharing.
We have celebrated Thanks Giving and it was such a fun.We got to spend some quality time together with our friends and families.I think this was the greatest time of my life because of all the blessings which Lord Jesus has blessed me with.Thanks for sharing this article.
Thanksgiving has a very great religious significance and everybody looks forward to this day.This is a day when we can thank our almighty for all the special graces that he has showered on us.Thanks for sharing this post and it was quite interesting.
Belated happy thanks giving ... The moral of the story .. give more, greed less , never be hopeless , be kind to forgive , be the mind to make peace , expect nothing , express every thing...
Regards Manjinder