Welcome to your morning gratitude meditation.
This practice is intended to help cultivate well-being,
Happiness,
And to help us strengthen our ability to notice the positive.
The more we practice gratitude,
The more we open ourselves to the abundance around us.
Our thoughts shape our moods,
And what we focus on grows stronger.
So let's strengthen gratitude together now.
Begin by finding a comfortable posture.
You may be lying in bed still,
Or if you're already up,
Find a comfortable seated position.
Once you've settled in,
Allowing the eyes to close,
Or take a soft downcast gaze.
Taking a few deeper breaths now.
Allowing the belly to expand fully with each inhale,
And releasing the breath slowly.
And now allowing the breath to return to its natural rhythm.
Now ask yourself,
What am I grateful for?
What do I appreciate?
What's on your mind,
Even if it might seem silly?
Savoring each blessing for a moment,
And then letting the next arise naturally.
Now choose one person or thing that you are grateful for.
It can be something big or small.
Perhaps it's that you are alive and breathing.
A crisp apple.
Let yourself fill with gratitude.
Feel how much it means to you.
Where does this feeling of gratitude live in your body?
How does your heart feel when you're grateful?
Silently saying thank you.
Now you might choose another blessing to offer your gratitude.
Or perhaps just resting here with these feelings of appreciation.
What am I grateful for?
What else do I appreciate?
As we come to the end of this meditation,
I'll leave you with a quote from Henri Nouwen,
And an invitation to remember gratitude throughout your day.
The choice for gratitude rarely comes without some real effort.
But each time I make it,
The next choice is a little easier,
A little freer,
A little less self-conscious.
