I have always considered myself to be appreciative of the many wonderful things Life brought me. But it wasn’t until I started to wholeheartedly reflect on what I perceived as negative in my life that gratitude transformed me and helped me heal my past.
I meditated on painful events of my life with the mindset “What was the hidden gift? What was I supposed to learn?”. As I was writing down the thoughts coming to me, I started to feel how changing my perception of the situation suddenly revealed its gift or the lesson I was supposed to learn.
An ex-boyfriend told me many times that my happiness was the only thing he cared about. Our relationship ended very painfully, though, and I carried bitterness for years. Looking at this relationship with the eyes of gratitude, I realized that he indeed gave me the gift of happiness! He sent me on a path to happiness by inspiring me to make a few important changes in my life, which led me to finally marry the man of my life 13 years later. I no longer carry bitterness towards my ex-boyfriend. I am at peace and grateful for having him in my life.
My arrogant boss made me feel afraid before any interaction I had with him. He was rude to me at times; I always remained polite and was bending over backwards to meet his expectations. As I was journaling about different things I am grateful for, his name came to my mind. What a surprise! At that moment, I saw that my fear of him was actually my fear of being myself! My boss was showing me that I valued more acceptance of others than being true to myself. I didn’t stand for myself since I was afraid my career would be at stake. Today, I don’t feel any grievances towards him and think of him as one of my most important teachers.
As I continued in my gratitude exercise, the list of events and relationships which transformed from being painful to being gifts grew substantially. I realized that I was never really alone in my life and whatever happened in my life had a profound value.
Now I know that Life is always on my side. I trust Life. Everything is happening for my highest good.
Gratitude is the shortest way to happiness. We have a choice in every situation.
Let’s be grateful! Life Loves us!
Thank you Blanka for sharing details of yout gratitude journey. Lovely writen, resonating with me and my values strongly. I am grateful you find me on FB and happy to hear more of you in the future. Marry Xmas and Happy New Year
Blanka, thank you for sharing this post during Thanksgiving week. Every morning when I wake up, I say, “Thank you!”
Dear Cloris, I am glad you found this post helpful. I love what you say about saying “Thank you” in the morning! Best, Blanka