(thanks to jean, tye and courtney for the making of this picture on thanksgiving).
"Gratitude, like faith, is a muscle. The more you use it, the stronger it grows, and the more power you have to use it on your behalf. If you do not practice gratefulness, its benefaction will go unnoticed, and your capacity to draw on its gifts will be diminished. To be grateful is to find blessings in everything, This is the most powerful attitude to adopt, for there are blessings in everything."
her class was on the power of raw foods--which was the first step cleanse.
she showed a picture of the new york garbage collectors strike that led to a pile up of garbage in the streets. it was really striking---the idea that we cannot throw some air freshners on top of that small dump in the street and expect it to "clean up" the garbage. we have to clean it out first--for the new good stuff to work and be effective.
we are now over a year on our "cleanse." i was familiarbefore julia's herb with the principles of raw food and good eating (since it has been a year since cali's classes). but it was a cool concept for me to think about having put the principles of "cleansing" into action. and not holding onto the harmful things that needed to be cleansed. letting them go.
as i looked back over the past 16 months or so i have thought about our phases. cleansing. completely changing the way we eat. i think it only makes sense the intense clutter-clearing that happened on other levels as well.
rebuilding. learning tools to rebuild once. some principels are a matter of inviting in. healing foods, essential oils and herbs. healing practices such as meditation and simplifying. forgiveness. filling up the empty spaces with practices of growth and strength. and for some things to recognize the "clutter" and keep the space clear and not invite some things back. it reminded me of this great analogy on getting rid of our "garbage"--i've attended a few of daniel's classes.
the word of the year i chose was "heal."
i am grateful for that guiding word this year.
i am grateful for the prayers (my own and others') that have helped guide my year.
i am grateful for the now myriad of vision boards i have displayed around my house--reminding myself every day of my goals and my vision of what i would like my life to be.
as i near the end of the year it has been a chance to evaluate the amount of growth (much more than my chinese radishes:)). my all is well necklace was a mantra--to get me to that point.
and truly at this point i can say, "all is well."
i do believe that gratitude has the power to heal.
this project was essential to my year of healing.
i reach for gratitude now.
in situations of anger or sadness.
or in relationships.
or in moments of beauty.
i realized i had learned this when an acquaintance was frustrated with something and said she would need to add this "to be fixed item" to her "list" and there were always so many things and always a "list." and in that moment i could see how clearly we had all been blessed with so much. and i lightly mentioned that we had another list of so many good things. she literally stopped in her tracks and mentioned how positive that was. but it was so true--and something i wouldn't have been able to see before. but i see so much more now. and i laugh again that the first thing i chose to be grateful for this year was "view."
Comments