Maria Gonzalez Blog
Mindful Leadership

To Be Grateful Is a Blessing

As Thanksgiving approaches I am reminded of gratitude.  To be grateful is to be truly blessed.  When we experience gratitude, our whole world changes.  Everything looks clearer, sharper, more beautiful.  We feel connected to everything and everyone around us.  And as a result we experience a deep love and compassion towards all beings.  But as this arises we are the ones that are blessed.  A flow of positive energy is ignited.  As like attracts like, our days seem to go much more smoothly.  And when challenges arise we are far less negatively impacted.  We find ourselves not struggling with the world and in turn the world is less likely to struggle with us.

And we don’t need to wait for big things for which to be grateful.  In fact, there are things to be grateful for all around us – all the time.  Of course, the big things are our family and friends.  But there are so many other things.  As I walked home today I was filled with gratitude for the sunshine, the warm air, the clean air, the changing leaves, the fact I could walk, that I could hear children playing in the park, that I could see the joy in a dog chasing its ball, that I could greet a neighbour, that I had a home to go to, that I could enjoy a cup of tea, that I could make someone laugh, that I could help someone see the beauty in themselves, that I could help someone find peace….

As I write this I am positively joyful, not because anything big and wonderful has happened.  But, because today I was open enough to be grateful for so many things.  It’s not that it’s a blessing to have good things, but rather it’s a blessing to be grateful for all things.

Louie Schwartzberg is an award-winning cinematographer, director, and producer and he has put together an incredibly beautiful video on “gratitude” that I hope you will enjoy.  I would like to thank Debbie McNair for passing it along.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXDMoiEkyuQ&amp:feature=share