I know it’s not for a few months, but Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays because I really like stuffing and mashed potatoes and I also really like the idea of gratitude. Many years ago, when I was in a really emotionally down space, a friend bought me a gratitude journal. I was completely annoyed and thought to myself, “What a bunch of woo-woo crap that won’t change a thing in my life.” And you were wondering why I was in a bad way??? 

Anyway, with that dreadful attitude in hand, I decided that it couldn’t hurt to write in a gratitude journal. So each day I followed the prompts in the journal and listed at least three things that I was grateful for on that day. My dog made the list every day, whereas my husband and my kids made it most of the time. Coffee was a popular entry, as well as walks in the woods and great books. The journal, however, asked me to write new and different things that I was grateful for. It pushed me to think beyond family and coffee.

Once I wrote that I was grateful for the stomach flu, because I felt so happy when I was over the flu. I started to add things that seemed negative, because I realized how those situations led me to gratitude in other areas. I started to look back on my life and felt gratitude for the times that felt bad or painful or felt like failures because I realized that those situations had led me to the very moment I was in. Those failures had also always taught me something about life and growth and living fully. 

This probably won’t surprise most of you, but journaling about what I was grateful for made me more grateful, more joyful, more open to all the feelings and experiences of life. The woo-woo crap of gratitude actually worked and I pulled out of the funk I was in. I started on a new and beautiful life path. I still journal what I’m grateful for, every single day. It never fails that even on the worst of days I can still find something to be grateful for. Luckily, I have coffee every day so that always makes the list. Sometimes I’m even grateful for sad situations, because grief means we loved and I’m grateful for the opportunity to love and to be loved.

Thank you, dear reader.  I’m grateful to all of you. Thank you for reading my emails, for your warm and loving comments, and for letting me be a small part of your lives.

With love,

Lisa Kaplin Psy. D. PCC

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Do you need help finding your voice, developing confidence and solution-centered plans to unlock the next chapter of your life in fulfilling ways that bring happiness and increased self-esteem? If so, I can help. Click here to learn more or inquire about my leadership and empowerment individual coaching options.