Day 9 - The Gratitude Breakfast Club

"As soap is to the body, laughter is to the soul." - Jewish proverb

Let's combine the benefits of laughter - including decreased stress and improved immune response - with the benefits of our gratitude practice today, for 1-2 punch of health and positivity!

The correlation between a gratitude practice and greater perceived levels of happiness - as well as improved overall physical, mental and emotional well-being - has been shown in study after study. The GBC offers easy and enjoyable prompts to jump-start or deepen your morning gratitude practice. These short sessions help you ground your energy, connect with your inner positivity and strength, and live your day the best way possible.

Every moment is a new moment, though, and gratitude helps no matter the hour on the clock, so tap into the Gratitude Breakfast Club any time you could use a pick-me-up!

Transcript

Hello and welcome to the Gratitude Breakfast Club,

A quick morning meetup to help you jumpstart or maintain your gratitude practice.

We'll make it quick because we know you have things to do on this beautiful day.

Hello beautiful ones.

A question on my mind this morning is this.

What did Yoda say after he saw himself on TV?

HDMI.

Ha!

Even if that joke didn't crack you up or even get you to crack a smile,

At the very least it offered up the potential for some laughter.

And the good news about laughter is that you don't have to be genuinely laughing at something to reap the benefits of a good guffaw.

As a Hasya or laughter yoga leader,

That's one of the first lessons I share with laughter yoga participants.

You can make yourself a laugh for any reason or no reason at all,

Without jokes,

Humor,

Or comedy.

And even fake laughter provides physical,

Mental,

And emotional benefits.

But this morning,

Let's make it easy to combine the benefits of laughter,

Which include increased oxygenation of the blood and brain,

A strengthened immune system,

And decreased stress,

With the benefits of our appreciation and gratitude practice.

First,

Start by thinking of two things you are thankful for or appreciate that make you laugh,

Or at the very least make you smile.

My first is stand-up comedians who combine insightful social commentary with absurdity.

Since,

According to my son,

I am only occasionally funny,

I truly marvel at and appreciate how the brains of funny people work.

The second for me is unforced happy baby and toddler laughter,

No tickling allowed.

Not only does their laughter sound cute as all heck,

But if they're laughing at something,

They're usually looking at it with love and wonder too,

And that's a sight I'll never get enough of.

Maybe for you it's funny animals,

Puns,

Or satirical writing.

Maybe it's cartoons or longer comics.

Maybe it's your significant other or a friend who has the uncanny ability to put into hilarious words exactly what you are thinking.

Whatever or whoever it is,

Take a moment today as you write in your journal to be happy that they exist.

With love,

Laughter,

Appreciation,

And gratitude,

This is Karen.