Originally posted on Facebook HERE
A couple times this week I’ve felt totally overwhelmed. I guess we all feel overwhelmed at times, especially with everything going on these days. Pandemic, masks, politics, people going stir-crazy. Life can be overwhelming. But the emotion that has been overtaking me lately, and when it comes it’s pretty strong – it washes over every inch of my body and soul – is gratitude. I felt it again this morning. It’ll hit me when I least expect it. I had to call my wife the other day as a wave of gratitude hit me while I was driving to an appointment. I called her because I know she knows the feeling. We’ve shared moments of gratitude with each other many times over the years. Have you felt that? Do you get overwhelmed with gratitude, where your heart just bursts with thankfulness and love so hard you can hardly stand it? I hope this is something everyone feels. I’m not sure it is, though. Some people just never seem happy or satisfied no matter what’s going on. I can’t be around people like that for very long. Makes me super uneasy – like, I just want to be somewhere else with other people who have thankful hearts and can share in our gratitude for the wonderful opportunity life offers us every moment of every day. When I do yoga, I end every session with six breaths. Breath one is pure cleansing. Breath two I say “thank you”. Meister Eckhart said, “If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is thank you, it will be enough”. And breath three I say “I am so grateful”. Yesterday marked 99 days in a row I’ve done yoga. The more I express my gratitude on a daily basis, the more grateful I seem to be getting. Let’s try to express gratitude whenever possible today, and every day. What a gift we’ve been given. Shouldn’t we appreciate that? How would you feel if you gave someone a gift and all they did was complain about it? You wouldn’t feel like giving them anything else, right? You have been given the greatest gift of all – life on earth. For a crazy short amount of time. Be thankful for that. Every day. The more you realize and express your gratitude, the more you’ll have to be grateful for. It’s like compound interest – only with love. And how great would it be if we all compounded gratitude and love for life and each other every moment of every day? What a world that would be. I am so grateful. I hope you are, too.
