How to Make Every Day a Day of Gratitude

Wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving I grew up in a traditional US home. Holiday celebrations were huge – lots of people, lots of food, watching football on TV, and always a competitive spirit in our own round of games.

However, as I began to mature and realize what was being celebrated in this holiday, I decided to opt out. My grandmother was half Native American. Partaking in a holiday that celebrates a gain that came about at the expense of the genocide of any people seems like a betrayal of all humankind and of my promise to God to love and serve all of creation without separation.

Now that I’m even older, I am discerning. I love the time with family, and now that everybody’s older, it’s harder to get everyone together in one place. If there is an opportunity to gather with the loved ones, at least the majority of them, I will take it.

In my heart and my prayer, I pray for peace, love, acceptance and forgiveness to prevail above all. And I am grateful for the fellow travelers in my life – all of them – and for the gifts we’ve been given – on the day we’ve named Thanksgiving Day and on every day!

So, I want to share some daily life habits that make every day a day of gratitude:

Wake each morning and, before you even get out of bed, think of 1 thing you are grateful for. Take 3 full breaths with this thought on your heart, and give yourself space to feel the gratitude.

Be grateful for your feelings, even the uncomfortable ones. Feelings and emotions are the great messengers that give us information to navigate this earth journey and discern truths for ourselves. They carry wisdom beyond what the mind has learned. Cherish them!

Give thanks for your fellow travelers – all of them. We are all reflections of one light, and we are here to help each other find the truth of the source from which we came and which we have not left, but have only temporarily forgotten.

With each meal, say a prayer of Thanksgiving. Every day. Every meal. This helps in so many ways beyond just being grateful for provision. When you feel gratitude, you let go of stress and negativity. This puts your body into the Rest & Digest mode of the parasympathetic nervous system, which your body needs to better digest what you’re eating and bring you better health overall!