What is Gratitude? The oxford dictionary defines it as “the quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness”. We are taught at a young age how important it is to say “Thank You”, to treat people with “kindness”, and to say “I’m Sorry” if we hurt someone else’s feelings intentionally or unintentionally. However, what we are not taught is to practice gratitude within ourselves on a daily basis.
“Thank you” is so easy to say without meaning. Our minds have been trained literally since birth from our parents and society that you say “Please and Thank You” but “Thank You” isn’t Gratitude, or at least the Gratitude that I am going to preach about today.
Gratitude is more than just a word it’s a feeling, a deep feeling of emotion that resonates inside your soul. Gratitude is the way that you feel when something happens around you, for you, for others around you, and to you. Gratitude is powerful and when you practice the art of gratitude you have the ability to make your life better in ways that you would have never thought possible.
Gratitude celebrates the “little things in life” or in my case helps me appreciate the little things in life far more than I ever have. Gratitude is a fucking game changer, like real life game changer. It improves our mental health, it helps strengthen our relationships, it allows us to embrace the failures or the bad things that has happened “for us” not “to us” and gratitude gives us the ability to see the lesson in it. Gratitude helps you be more optimistic as opposed to pessimistic, it allows you to experience life and joy and it takes the place of sadness by turning it into happiness, joys and pleasures.
I used to just live life, I didn’t live it for any other purpose other than make money, provide for my two children, spend the money on experiences for the creations of memories, and accomplish “my” goals in life. I was very selfish with “my” time until I realized that I wasn’t living, I was just going through the motions. I was able during this time to make a great living or so I thought for myself and my two children however was it worth it? That was the lingering question that always entered my mind. I used to tell myself, one more year and I am done. Over a decade later into my career the questioned still lingered as I basically signed my life away, literally. During those decades I forgot about all the little things that made Kelli happy. I had to take time to re-learn to appreciate the world around me through Gratitude and so I did.
Over the last five years I have been able to truly appreciate the little things in life and I have been able to see the little things in life more than ever before this year. I never used to stare at the moon, I do it every night now, even when she’s (the moon) in her new moon phase. Did you know if you look hard enough you can see her outline in the sky? The moon for me is just a friendly reminder that it is okay to start new and move forward with the next chapter of your life, that nothing is permanent and you get to define what’s inside your soul. You see years ago that would have been so hard for me to accept because I had this built in mindset on what I wanted in my life. Accepting this was not in the plans. Plus when you experience the disappointments they push you harder into making them accomplishments or at least that is how it worked for me. So, to be able to appreciate the new moon and what she brings as a new has allowed me to let go of the predetermined life that was once instilled in my mind by myself and a group of other people controlling the outcome of my future.
“Be like the moon and show up no matter what phase you’re in”
Spirit Daughter
Another one of my little things in life that I took for granted was smiling at random strangers and looking at others around me in public. I used to just walk into a store or shop on my mission, gather what I needed, and walk out. Not really caring about who is around me and I know I wasn’t the only one. Cell phones, social media, air pods, apple watches have all made it very convenient to not be present over the last couple of decades. Now it is different, I try really hard to walk into the stores present, not on my phone, and just enjoying the moment. Don’t get me wrong, I am human and I do have my moments at times, so if you see me disconnected just pull me back in. I mean have you smiled at a random person in public and then watched their reaction? It’s pretty priceless to say the least. I especially love when women smile back too, it’s Rich Bitch Energy and it’s my FAV Vibes of all time! Maybe because as women have all these bullshit ideas instilled inside us at a young age that consists of; grown jealously, ego fighting with false beauty, or not being good enough. Once we are able to release all that inner bullshit we all realize that we just love each other and not the “rumors or gossip” that is told by other individuals. We really are all the same, just beautiful humans living for us and no one else.
I remember about 2 years ago I was coming out of Frys (it’s a grocery store in Arizona) and there was this older man with a bouquet of flowers, probably in his seventies, and he was standing outside the sliding glass doors. I looked at him while I was leaving and said, “Have a great day, see you next week” and he said ma’am these are for you. I remember looking at him and saying “for me, why for me” and he said “every week I see you here and you are smiling and you always say hi to everyone and you seem so happy and you make so many people happy without knowing it so I wanted to make you happy today”. It was the kindness, sweetest, gesture that I had ever received. In that moment I felt extreme gratitude. My whole heart and body were filled with this golden light that just resonated inside my cells and I felt so warm with love. I am usually the giver of the Gratitude and not the receiver so this was an experience I will never forget. I am forever grateful to that man at the sliding glass door of Fry’s.
A couple of other examples of “little things” for me include:
- Watching the sunrise in the morning
- Listening to my kids on the way to school without being on the phone for work or listening to music in the background, just being present with them
- Taking five minutes just to turn off “life” and breathe alone in my own space
- Small wins in life, like the time I changed the air filter in the home, or replaced the doggy door, Yep, I did that ALL BY MYSELF
- The look on my doggies faces when I come home and giving them my undivided attention for a couple minutes each time
- Writing a letter to someone, a hand written letter and receiving one. I just received one in May and it made my 2022
- Laughing so hard your stomach muscles hurt
- Reading a book in silence with only nature in the background
- The mountains that look fake
- Watching the sunsets that don’t need a #FILTER
- Rain, Thunder, Lightning, Storms
- Sleeping more than five hours straight
- Waking up every single morning
- Saying “Thank You” to my heart and appreciating it for beating all by itself without ever having to be reminded
- CHRISTMAS MOVIES 🎄 🎄 🎄
My wish for you this week is that you get to experience the “Little Things” in life that maybe you have forgotten about or the “Little Things” in life that maybe make you smile, like really smile by yourself, that internal happiness even if it’s just once a day.
XOXOXOXO
Kelli
10.24.2022
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