“If you find a path with no obstacles, it probably doesn’t lead anywhere.” – Frank Clark
I listened to an interview this week with Bethany Hamilton. She’s the young girl that lost her arm to a shark attack at the age of 13 while surfing near her home on Kauai. The movie “Soul Surfer” was about her story.
What an amazing young woman I found her to be! Talk about getting back on the horse after you fall off! She was back on the surf board four weeks later. I can’t imagine pushing through that kind of fear. Getting back in the ocean after an attack like that!
Now at the age of 29, she is married, has 2 little boys, and will be on a competitive surfing tour this year. She has such an amazing spirit and really embodies the spirit of Thanksgiving and “finding the blessing in the challenge”.
Giving Thanks
This week, the United States celebrates our national holiday, Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving was born and grew out of hard times. The first Thanksgiving took place after nearly half the pilgrims died from a rough winter and year. It became a national holiday in 1863 in the middle of the Civil War and was moved to its current date in the 1930s following the Great Depression.
This holiday is all about being grateful for what you have and not to dwelling on what you don’t have or what you’ve lost. It reminds us to look at life’s obstacles as challenges and opportunities for growth, problem-solving, and creativity.
If you’re a competitor, it’s about being thankful and celebrating the wins, but also being grateful for the lessons learned from the loss. It is precisely during our most challenging times that we are given the opportunity to discover who we really are.
There’s no shortage of scientific evidence that supports the fact that grateful people are happier, more resilient to stress, experience greater empathy, improved sleep and enhanced self-esteem.
Whatever goal you want to achieve, whether it involves working with your horse, improving your riding or any other part of your life, overcoming obstacles will be part of the process. Expect and accept them as part of achieving the goal.
If fact, most of what transforms us as people is not about accomplishing the goal. Goals change or are met and new one’s are set. It’s really about the person you have to become in the process. It’s about the shifts in confidence we make, the time we manage, the budgets we stick to, the decisions we make and the skills we must acquire. These things can not be taken from us no matter what the outcome! Celebrate that!
But, let’s get real. It can be hard to see the goodness when we are facing some very challenging things in life. But, my friends, that is when we need gratitude the most! That’s when we must go looking for it.
Three Ways to Find Gratitude
1. Start With Any Little Thing
The law of attraction states what you put out will return to you. If you are grateful for what you have in your life, you are going to attract more to be grateful for. This applies across all areas of life. The breath in your body. A place to sleep. A bite to eat. A friend to call.
Find appreciation for the little things and build up from there. When you think of it, these so-called little things are not really little at all. They are life giving. Yet these are the very things we overlook because they are innate and familiar.
Pause and notice these things now. Give thanks for them. Just a minute will be enough to shift you to a place where you can better deal with the challenges before you.
“When life is sweet, say thank you and celebrate, when life
is bitter, say thank you and grow.” ~Author Unknown
2. Do One Thing Today That You Are Good At
Remind yourself of all that you are capable of by moving toward your talents. Is it your skill with horses? Perhaps you are a good rider. If you’re fortunate enough to own a horse or be able to ride, you do not have to look very hard to find something to be grateful for.
Maybe you are a good cook or great at organizing. Are you a talented artist or gardener? Maybe you are handy at fixing things.
When you feel that everything is falling apart around you, turn toward your talents. And when you are done, you have another thing to be grateful for!
3. Focus on the People Who Have Blessed You
Here’s a quote from Albert Einstein:
“A hundred times every day I remind myself that my inner and outer
life are based on the labors of other men, living and dead, and that I must exert
myself in order to give in the same measure as I have received and am still receiving.”
Remember and say “thank you” to others for the ways they have blessed your life. You can make yourself happier and nurture your relationship with another person by writing a thank-you letter expressing your enjoyment and appreciation of that person’s impact on your life.
According to a host of research studies focusing on gratitude, thank-you letters may be the most mutually beneficial gift in the world. The writer of the thank-you letter benefits with increased physical well being, psychological well being, and increased empathy. How did the letter affect the ones who received it? In one research study, the receivers of gratitude letters described their mood as ‘ecstatic’.
When asked if my cup is half-full or half empty, my only
response is that I am thankful I have a cup. ~Author Unknown
Final Thoughts
Cultivating every-day-gratitude takes time and patience, but it enables us to take a step back and view life from its entirety rather than becoming mired in self- pity and overwhelmed by its challenges. It allows us to gain perspective. To make choices on creating the life we want to live rather than getting lost in the hand we are dealt.
I wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving!
With Gratitude, Enjoy the Ride!