Dear %%FIRST_NAME%%,
How did you find yesterday’s technique? Remember, there’s a special discussion forum thread where you can tell me how you got on and also get answers to any questions: Saying thank you for an everyday object.
Today I’d like to add a cherry on the top of yesterday’s cake – it’s how to crank up the feeling of gratitude for that everyday object and it’s one of my absolute favourite gratitude exercises. It seems to work, no matter how I’m feeling. Want to find out more?
Taking Gratitude For That Everyday Object To The Next Level
- Pick an everyday object – perhaps something you use several times a day, maybe a pen, your keys, your watch – whatever you see in front of you.
- Hold the object in your hand and really ‘see it’. Become aware of its shape, its form, its colour, its texture, any sounds it makes, the way it feels in your hand. Allow yourself to notice the details that you perhaps haven’t seen before.
- Now gently allow your heart to soften as you say ‘thank you’ to this object. Thank it for the role it plays in your life. You don’t have to ‘tell a story’ or get into details; simply the words ‘thank you’, said from the heart, are what are needed.
- Next start to imagine each person who was involved, to allow that object to get to you – and say a silent ‘thank you’ to them:
- Somebody first imagined it – thank you
- Somebody had the idea to make it – thank you
- Somebody figured out how to make it – thank you
- Somebody set up the factory or workshop where it was made – thank you
- Somebody (or many people) physically made it – sourcing the raw materials, designing the machines and manufacturing processes and actually doing the ‘making’ – thank you
- Somebody decided to buy it, wholesale, and to stock it in their shop – thank you
- Somebody ran that shop and worked in that shop, so you could buy it – thank you
- Experience and feel how each person’sactions helped you – a complete stranger whom they will never meet.
- How does it shift your view of life?
Michael Bernard Beckwith suggests we:
“Look at the world through a lens of gratitude.”
That’s exactly what today’s exercise helps us to do.
It shifts our perspective and opens our heart and mind to seeing from the viewpoint of gratitude. That has a deep impact on even the cellular level processes in our bodies and can truly change our lives.
I’m curious: how did you get on with this exercise? Want to share? Got any questions? Saying thank you for an everyday object.
Gracias,
Namaste,
Here’s Your Week Two Project & Useful Links
Bedtime Gratitude Spiral
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- Before you fall asleep, choose three things you feel grateful for, to use for this exercise.
It might be something that happened during the day; it might be something from your gratitude jar. It doesn’t really matter what you choose, as long as it helps you to connect with the feeling of gratitude in your heart. - Allow yourself to gently rest in the feeling of gratitude for the first thing.
- Really experience the grateful emotion. Feel the gratitude expanding and growing. Don’t force, just let it naturally work its magic.
- Really dive into the experience you are feeling grateful for. See what you would be seeing, if it were happening right now; hear what you would hear; feel the physical sensations that you would feel.
- Allow the intensity of your gratitude to increase, perhaps imagining that you have a dial you can use to turn up the feeling.
- If the feeling of gratitude starts to wane, move on to the second thing and repeat #2.
Then, just as you notice it start to wane, move onto your third thing. - You can keep going, if you want to, until you fall asleep.
- Notice how your mood is shifted.
Perhaps say a heart-felt ‘thank you’ to yourself, for choosing to do the Bedtime Gratitude Spiral.
It can help to anchor this process into part of your bedtime routine, to help you remember to do it. For example, you could tie it in with turning off your light. If you read before you sleep, you could anchor it in with putting the book down. Or you could choose to do it when your head touches the pillow.
You only need to do this for a few days and already you’re creating a life-long positive habit.
I’d love to hear your experiences of playing with this technique. Here’s a special discussion thread in the forum, for you to share your insights and ask any questions you may have: The Bedtime Gratitude Spiral.
Here’s the members-only community (private) and even the Facebook Page (public), where you can ask questions, share your experiences and support others who are joining in with the Miracle Of Gratitude.