Thanks for Thanksgiving Week!

I have to begin this Thanksgiving week by saying how grateful I am to all of you who follow

Good News!

and especially those of you who leave comments

and let me know there is really someone out there reading this.

I also want to announce that awhile back I responded to the comments people left on

Good News!

but I stopped because it didn't seem anyone was reading them--

especially the person I was responding to.

But I miss the interaction and so I am going to respond once again to comments that are left here.

So be sure to look back if you left a comment and read my response.

 

I hope you enjoy every moment of this week of gratitude!

Of all the holidays in the year, Thanksgiving is my favorite

and that's why I'm making it into a week long celebration instead of a one day event.

I am thankful for so many things I can't fit it all into one day!

Today I'm concentrating on you and friends and family relationships. I'm so very grateful!

No Big Deal!

I've actually got time today to stop and enjoy the beautiful world around me!

I can't begin to tell you how much the "But Thanks" game helped me through yesterday. By the end of the day I was exhausted and I was in even more physical pain, but my heart was so full of goodness that the pain didn't matter because all day long I kept thinking about how much worse it could have been and how grateful I was that it wasn't worse.

This morning the doctor ordered X-Rays on the right ankle, but I haven't heard yet what the verdict is. I do know that it is swollen and bruised and that it hurts to bend it, "But Thanks" I can still walk on it when it is stabilized in a boot that comes up to my ankle.

Living in Truth really works. I am very happy today. I'm considering it a day off and doing some things I normally would not be able to enjoy. In other words, I'm looking at this as an opportunity! I know that six years ago, before I learned about Living in Truth, I would have been in the Pit of Illusion big time by today and so full of vexation I would be physically ill and unable to enjoy anything at all.

I LOVE Living in Truth!

Playing the "But Thanks" Game

I'm playing the But Thanks game today. My day started like all teaching days. The alarm went off, I rolled out of bed, put on my exercise clothes, and walked downstairs to get a drink of water before my prayers and stretching out. 

The only problem is that instead of walking down the last three or four stairs, I tumbled down them. My shoulder hurts. I can barely walk on my right foot. My hand is swollen, 

But Thanks that I didn't fall from the top stair. 

But Thanks I wasn't knocked unconscious or hit my head. 

But Thanks I didn't shatter the glass display case at the bottom of the stairs. 

But Thanks Mr. J was there to help take care of me and drive me to work. 

But Thanks I made it to school (barely in time). 

But Thanks I made it through my first class of the day. 

And here's hoping that at the end of the day I can say, "But Thanks" that I made it through my three back to back afternoon classes. I'll count on that!

There's always something to be grateful for!

Honor the Ordinary

At different times in my life I've fallen into a trap of thinking that it is only the big, spectacular things that I have to be grateful for--like getting a promotion at work, or winning something, or getting something that I'd wanted for a long time, or a prayer for healing being answered.

But the older I get the more I realize that there are many, many ordinary, every day things that I am grateful for, but that I don't acknowledge those things enough. The surprising thing is how much joy and happiness giving thanks for those things brings into my life.

Consciously thinking, "I am grateful for rain drops," or "I am grateful for a soft pillow," or "I am grateful for a cuddly place to sleep," or "I am grateful for strawberries," or "I am grateful for the sound of children giggling," or "I am grateful for a warm shower," brings an immediate joy into my heart that I can feel bouncing inside me like a helium balloon. It is almost like magic!

Not surprisingly in my recent studies, I've read over and over again where researchers have shown that if people will just write down three things they are grateful for each day it can change them. So I've set about looking for and honoring the ordinary.

I'm grateful for words. I'm grateful for color. I'm grateful for music.

It's your turn. What three things are you grateful for?

Empowered

We’re now entering the week of giving thanks! Thanksgiving is my very favorite holiday—good food, good company, lots of love, and a reminder to be thankful.
I was talking to D2 today and she told me how she has been using the Truth Tool gratitude and playing the “But thanks. . . “ game all week and how it has made her feel so good. She told me several experiences and then exclaimed, “Giving thanks changes you!” I couldn’t agree more.

Thanksgiving is a great time to remember all that we have to be thankful for. It is also a great time to practice using the Gratitude Truth Tool. Instead of thinking, “Yikes, I have to cook dinner for twenty people!” give thanks and say, “Wow, I’ve got twenty people to love and who love me. How blessed I am.” Then notice what happens inside you. It isn’t just about a warm fuzzy feeling that comes. It is about the energy and empowerment that surges through you when you give thanks. Sincerely giving thanks is like plugging yourself into an energy source. It invigorates. It uplifts. It encourages. So give thanks and reap the benefits!