Relationships

November 2004 - The Power of Gratitude

Dear Reader,

Congratulations to Diane W.! She is the winner of the $75.00 salon/spa gift certificate! Thank you to all who participated in the mom's market survey. Your input was invaluable to me!

Smell the Coffee and the Cookies too! is a newsletter designed to help you integrate and improve all facets of your life. Before we can be great moms, we have to be the very best we can be to ourselves.

I am a trained personal and professional life coach. I am also a work-from-home mom. My goal with this newsletter is to support moms by sharing ideas based on my expertise and my 20 year long journey of personal growth. If you have questions about anything presented here, or would like to see one of your particular issues addressed in a future issue, please feel free to call me at (630) 236-7142 or e-mail me at lori.radun@sbcglobal.net

If you know of others who may wish to receive this e-newsletter, please direct them to our website at www.true2youlifecoaching.com, where they can subscribe, or feel free to forward the e-newsletter to them.

Have a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Lori

Quote of the Month:

Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude.

--Denis Waitley

The power of gratitude

When my older son was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, my first reaction was relief – I finally knew the reason for his behavior. However, I was also overwhelmed with sadness, fear and anger. I felt sorry for my son and for myself. Like many others in similar circumstances, my question to God was "Why me?"

Through the grace of God, I am now able to focus on my gratitude. I believe God chose me to raise my son because He knew that I would give him the best I have. He will teach me to love and understand him for who he is. I am grateful that I have my son, and grateful that God chose me to be his mother.

There is power and healing in gratitude.

How can gratitude help us in our everyday lives as moms? Think about the difference you can make in your family’s life just by noticing and being thankful for all the great things they do. When you express gratitude, you show your love and appreciation. Everyone needs to feel these things every day. Sometimes as moms we feel that no one appreciates us – and it is true that moms are usually last on the list to be thanked. One way you can teach gratitude is by example. Even on the days when it seems your children or husband are doing everything wrong, find a reason to thank them. Take the time and energy to look for the good. Think about the things that your family does that deserve a thank you. You might say to your husband, “Thank you for working so hard for our family," or, to your child, “I really appreciate your sense of humor – it feels good to laugh.” Expressing your gratitude helps family members to understand how it feels to be appreciated. And if they still don’t catch on, let them know when you feel unappreciated. You can also tell them how great it makes you feel when they do express gratitude.

Gratitude is a wonderful motivator when you need cooperation. When enlisting the help of my two year old, I praise him often and with enthusiasm. I let him know that he is a great helper. I know I am teaching him appreciation because he expresses it to me. The other day I brought a bunch of multi-colored roses home. For five days, at least once or twice a day, my son thanked me for the flowers.

Sometimes we get so busy and caught up in daily life that we forget to be grateful. We expect everyone to do their share without being asked. The only time anyone hears anything is when a chore has not been completed. This attitude, over the long haul, will develop very resentful and uncooperative family members.

When life is good, gratitude is easy. It becomes more challenging to be grateful when we are experiencing hard times. Financial hardship, long-term illness, the death of a loved one and marital strife can all be trying and difficult. It is hard to find anything to be grateful for. But while pain is inevitable, suffering is optional. We have a choice in how we view our circumstances. We can turn our hearts to God and trust that he has a plan for us. We can be thankful for the lessons we learn and the opportunities for personal growth and transformation. Look at all the people in this world who share the gifts they received during especially difficult times of their life. It is the painful times of my life that have made me stronger, wiser, and more loving today.

I recently attended a powerful seminar on the various levels of energy that a human being emanates. The presenter identified seven different levels of energy. The first level of energy is defined by feelings of apathy and thoughts of victimization. A person at a level two energy has feelings of anger and thoughts of conflict. As a person moves up the energy scale, their feelings and thoughts are more positive. At level seven, one would experience unconditional love and no judgmental thoughts. Only God radiates at level seven. The average person emits energy at a level of 2.5. To experience peace and joy, an individual must raise his energy level to 5 or 6.

So how can we raise our energy level and open our heart to joy? One powerful way is to develop an attitude of gratitude. Look at everyone with grateful eyes. Listen to your heart and the heart of your loved ones. Speak words of affirmation every day of your life. Be grateful for your life with all its lessons and blessings. The more grateful thoughts and feelings you experience and express the more instrumental you will be in healing the world. And your outlook on life will improve in the process.

Take Action Assignment

For the month of November, I encourage you to keep a gratitude journal. At the beginning of each day, I want you to write in your journal the top 3 things you are grateful for that day. Start with anything at all and fill in the 3 slots in order. At any time during the day when something you are grateful for "makes the list", place it in its proper order and remove the last item. Continue throughout the day looking for things to make the list. You can only have 3 things on your list at any given time.

Example: 1. My daughter gave me a kiss. 2. My husband made the coffee this morning. 3. The baby slept in this morning.

Review the list often during the day to remind you to count your blessings. Thinking of the list will help you look for things you are grateful for. Start over with this exercise the next morning. Continue your gratitude journal throughout the month. How does this affect your outlook on life?

Fun Corner

Spend a day or two helping your children make a gift for 3 special people in their life. Some gift ideas include:

• Homemade Christmas ornament
• Batch of cookies
• Homemade card
• Beaded jewelry
• A book with a story they write
• A picture, poem or other special sentiment in a frame

Have your children include a note that says, "Thank You for being.............."

Deliver your gifts to these special people before Thanksgiving or save them for Christmas presents.

Resources

To look good, feel good, and earn some extra money, contact Deb Villarese at Shaklee: (630) 420-2119 or www.shaklee.net/debv

Shaklee products are all natural - for your skin, for your environment, and for your well being!

Attitudes of Gratitude: How to Give and Receive Joy Everyday of Your Life
By M.J. Ryan

www.amazon.com

Attitudes of Gratitude Journal

By M.J. Ryan

www.amazon.com

Find out more...

If you would like to find out more about how coaching can change your life, please visit my website at www.true2youlifecoaching.com. For the months of November and December, I am offering a coaching special:

$50 off/mo. on any 3-month coaching package

Please call (630) 236-7142 to set up an appointment for your COMPLIMENTARY coaching session.

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