Good morning,
And welcome to this meditation to start your day with gratitude and positivity from the heart.
A morning ritual is a great way to set the tone for your day.
It can help you to be prepared to respond to the events to come in peace and positivity so that you can be successful.
Meditation can be one part of your morning ritual that you will benefit from with daily practice.
Taking time each day to remind and reinforce what you are grateful for is a powerful tool to moving towards your higher self.
Practicing gratitude is just that,
A practice.
Just like happiness,
There is no destination.
It is a way of living.
The beauty of the practice of gratitude is in the journey itself.
And now let's begin.
Be sure to turn off all possible distractions for the next 10 to 15 minutes.
I invite you to sit in a comfortable position,
Either in a chair or on the floor with your spine upright.
Close your eyes gently if you like.
And begin to breathe in deeply.
And as you breathe out,
Feel as your body softens completely.
For the next four cycles of breath,
You will breathe in through your nose for the count of four,
Then hold for a count of seven if you can,
Or shorter if you need,
Then breathe out through your mouth for the count of eight.
I will count the first cycle for you,
Then you will continue this breath pattern for three more breath cycles on your own.
First,
Exhale completely.
And now breathe in,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Hold,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six,
Seven,
And breathe out,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six,
Seven,
Eight.
And now continue at your own pace for three more cycles of breath.
Allow your breath to return to its natural pattern and let go of the counting.
Take a moment now to simply notice how you are feeling after practicing four deliberate and relaxing breaths.
Now that you are relaxed,
Let's consider today's topic of gratitude and positivity.
Living a life full of gratitude is an essential component of a healthy lifestyle.
Accepting each moment for what it is and truly being grateful for where you are in the moment is at the heart of happiness.
There is so much in life to be grateful for.
Focusing on gratitude is like shining a spotlight on what's important.
It can brighten the darkness.
It can change your mood in an instant.
It can alter your perception.
It can show you the way you were meant to go.
You can create your own paradigm shift by practicing gratitude daily,
By building a habit,
By creating a new way to live your life.
When you are grateful for what is in your life,
You will see that every moment offers opportunity to grow.
You will see opportunities present themselves that you may have been blind to before.
You will realize that challenges in life are all part of your journey.
And now I invite you to take the next few moments to honor and thank all those people and events in your life that you are grateful for.
Sometimes,
We need to dig deep to find the gift of gratitude in life.
And other times,
It is right in front of us.
Everything in life is truly a gift to behold if we allow it to be,
And if we acknowledge it as such.
It is simple to see the obvious good in our lives,
Perhaps the food we have to eat,
The shelter to protect us from the elements,
Our loved ones,
And our health.
It takes a practice of gratitude to recognize the failures as learning opportunities,
The limitations as time to grow,
And the challenges as what builds strength and character.
It is sometimes difficult to be thankful for the times that you may feel overworked and tired,
But knowing you have worked hard to make a difference in this world is something to be grateful for.
It may come easily to find gratitude for what's good in your life,
But the true satisfaction and fulfillment comes to those who find gratitude for the obstacles and challenges in life.
When you are able to change how you look at these challenges,
They can become your blessings.
You can be thankful for your past as it has brought you to this present moment.
You can be thankful for your limits that will teach you how to be patient and persistent.
Gratitude can teach you to have less wanting because what you have is enough.
And now for the next few moments of stillness and silence,
Feel the gratitude in your heart,
Feel the emotion,
Feel the energy,
And send out that feeling to those you are grateful for.
And bring that feeling inward to honor yourself as well.
Those people who reflect upon the things they're thankful for are more likely to have positive emotions and they may feel content with what they have already.
Gratitude invites the expression of more compassion and kindness for ourselves and for others,
Which will contribute to making the world a better place.
By practicing gratitude daily,
It will slowly change our perception of situations simply by shifting what we focus on.
And now take a moment to consider how you can take the feeling and the positive energy of gratitude with you as you go on with your day.
A daily gratitude practice can take the form of a meditation such as this one,
Or the practice of journaling,
Or simply expressing your gratitude to those people you are grateful for.
This practice of an attitude of gratitude can be as simple as looking at a seemingly negative situation and finding the positive,
Finding the silver linings.
Because this is a journey,
It is important to share the sentiment often and continue the practice of gratitude daily.
And now begin to bring your awareness back to the present moment,
Back to the surface below you.
Open your breath again and invite in a building sense of energy to start your day.
When you are ready,
Open your eyes and start your day positively with the intention to practice gratitude.
Thank you so much for taking the time to listen to this meditation.
I hope you have a wonderful and grateful day.
