Ever since my companion and I used President Monson's talk on gratitude for our visiting teaching message earlier this month, I've been trying my very hardest to apply the points in his talk to my life! The thing I felt I need to work on most was cutting down the thought and time I put into focusing on things I don't have and instead just being thankful for the things I do have! In other words, picking up an "attitude of gratitude." Spiffy phrase, that one. :] It isn't exactly difficult to do, but it does require constant conscious effort throughout the whole day, and I'm easily distracted haha.
It wasn't long until I found that when I look at my life from a grateful perspective, I can't help but be happy. It's automatic. And when I make the effort to thank my Heavenly Father for helping me on an exam or for the beautiful fall colors on the mountains or around campus, pretty soon I'm seeing things all over the place that I never took the time to be thankful for before. Things like good hair days! A teacher who extends the testing period for an exam. A smile from a (good looking :] ) stranger on campus when I'm having a rough day. My mentality changes from one of just thinking about how little time I have and how stressed I am to one where I see proof all over the place that God is on my side. Then I just keep finding more and more things to be thankful for and my happiness grows as I see how blessed I am. It's a domino effect.
Living in thanksgiving every day is a habit that I can't imagine living without before! I love the sweet spirit I have with me throughout the day and the way I feel like I'm looking at life in a whole new way. I'm finding that I can always find a reason to be thankful for anything that I see or experience during my day. Even the things I normally would treat as burdens can be turned into blessings just by using my attitude of gratitude. For example: I am thankful for exams because they mean that I'm attending a school that is challenging me and helping me get the best out of my classes! ...Kayy that's kinda pushing it, but you get the idea.
I love this quote from President Monson's talk:
"We can lift ourselves and others as well when we refuse to remain in the realm of negative thought and cultivate within our hearts an attitude of gratitude. If ingratitude be numbered among the serious sins, then gratitude takes its place among the noblest of virtues. Someone has said that “gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others.”
I have definitely seen proof of that last sentence. Seems to me that when you recognize Heavenly Father's hand in your life, the happiness that results just makes you want to do everything good! And I intend to keep it that way. Even after the turkey and stuffing leftovers are long gone. Oh! And I'm thankful for this blog that gives me the opportunity to share my thoughts with my family and friends back home.
My life is definitely a good one! :]
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