Dear %%FIRST_NAME%%,
How are you getting on with your gratitude practices? Is it getting easier to remember to do them? Are you enjoying them? Have you made any tweaks? Got any insights? Questions? Please feel free to share over at the forum: Week Three – How are you getting on?
Today I’d like to share with you a technique that is more of a ‘mindset’, than a ‘something to do’. It helps you keep your focus when you’re on a longer journey – like a 100 day gratitude project. It helps make sure you celebrate each step, even those that may feel like they are steps backwards, and appreciate the effort you are putting in.
“Rather than losing heart, focusing on how far there is to travel, lift your spirits and inspire your soul by being grateful for how far you have come.”
I know that people have been joining in with The Miracle Of Gratitude for many reasons. Whatever your reasons are, how about taking a moment, right now, to appreciate the fact that you have chosen to jump on board and make a start on this journey? Take a moment to celebrate the times you have felt grateful in the last two weeks. It’s what we do that counts, not what we don’t do.
And, as a reminder from last week, how about sharing your answers to the following questions via the forum?
- Why you are joining in with The Miracle Of Gratitude – has it changed at all, as you are going through the third week?
- How would you like your experience of gratitude to shift over the coming year? Have you had a chance to get any more insight on this one, this week?
- And what do you find it easy to feel grateful for? What has worked best for you this week? Want some inspiration? How about checking out what others are saying?
- Do you have any favourite gratitude quotes? Here’s where you can share them at the forum: Favourite Gratitude Quotes.
Köszönöm!
Namaste,
Week 3 Gratitude Project & Useful Links
Mindful Breathing – With Gratitude
[audio:http://]
Here’s a transcript of the meditation:
The Gratitude Breath Meditation
Start by sitting with your back fairly straight. Imagine a thread pulling through the crown of your head, gently lengthening your spine, allowing a space to form between each vetebra. You’re not looking for ramrod straight; you’re looking for gentle, natural curves, with a relaxed stretch. And as that thread draws up through the crown of your head, gently lengthening the lumbar spine, all the way up to the thoracic spine, and the neck… tucking the chin under slightly, to elongate the back of the neck and release any tension… Then we’ll start with three deep sighing breaths, breathing in through the nose and out through the mouth, with an ‘ahh’ sound.
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3 sighing breaths.
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Feeling the tension melting away…
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For the next few moments, I’d like you just to let your awareness – focus – your attention – rest on your breathing; accepting your breathing and not trying to change it in any way…
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And if your mind wanders, how about giving it a job? Bringing your awareness back to your breath… and this time, as you breathe in, consciously choosing to think: Thank you for my life-giving breath; and as you breathe out: Thank you for my life-giving breath…
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And for the next few moments, I invite you to really connect with the organs and the muscles and other bits and bobs in the body that allow you to breathe; and as you breathe in and out, saying a silent ‘thank you’ to your diaphragm… to your lungs… all of the muscles and the tendons… and everything else that allows you to breathe… whether breathing is effortless for you… or whether sometimes it’s more of a challenge… Thank you diaphragm… Thank you lungs… Thank you body… Thank you breath…
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And allow that sense of gratitude to grow… as your breath fills your body with life-giving energy… and the out-breath carries away the old by-products and toxins… allow that thank you to flow through every oxygenated cell in your body…
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And when you’re ready… it’s time to release today’s practice… making sure your feet are flat on the ground, imagine you’re growing roots from the soles of your feet, deep into the earth… and these roots are connecting you with the earth beneath you… breathing in from the earth… breathing out into the earth… and you might see those roots; you might feel them physically; you might even hear them as they grow… and when you have a strong sense of those roots, anchoring you into the earth, take a deep sighing breath… a little stretch, keeping your eyes gently closed… rubbing the palms of your hands together, creating some warmth… and when you can feel that warmth, cupping that warmth over your gently closed eyes… opening your eyes behind those hands and gently spreading your fingers, to let the light in, bit by bit… rubbing your face… a good stretch and a good yawn! Thank you… That’s your “Thank you breath” meditation. I wish you a wonderful day!
When you have had a chance to play with the week three Gratitude Project, please remember to pop by the forum and share your experiences: Week 3 Discussion Thread