3 Ways to Help You Wake Up With a Smile Everyday
I’m sitting and reflecting on this day, my 54th birthday …. I sometimes find myself a little awestruck at how truly blessed my life is. Sure I’ve had my share of heartbreak, loss and disappointments. I mean, those are part of life, right?
The thing that strikes me, is how does one hang on to all of the GREAT, focus on the good and CHOOSE to wake up every morning with a SMILE, a knowing and an optimism that THE WORLD IS GOOD? I have this theory, it’s a pretty simple one and not really earth shattering. It isn’t based on research - that’s just not my thing. My experiences, my life is my research and here’s what I’ve learned about WAKING UP WITH A SMILE every morning.
#1 PRACTICE GRATITUDE
I don’t just mean saying “thank you”.... or any other occasional reference to being grateful about something happening in your life. Don’t stop doing those things! Of course they matter. What I’m talking about is a more regular practice, not unlike your morning jog, daily meditation or maybe for you, it’s coffee on the veranda.
grat·i·tude
“The quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness,”
- Oxford
Okay, I did a little research. Well, let’s qualify “a little”. I went to GOOGLE and the top of the list was this definition. I liked it… so I used it… simple as that. In essence, gratitude is appreciation of life itself, without the need to accumulate, to simply see all of the gifts before us, many of which simply appear without effort. What’s your “quality of being thankful”? How ready are you to show appreciation for and return kindness? What I can tell you, is that practicing gratitude has helped CHANGE MY LIFE. When life gets a little tougher, throws me a curve ball, I can face it with more enthusiasm, more hope than before. Because, I know that it is only a moment in time. It is not my “story” or my lot in life. I am on this constant discovery of life and all that it offers. That’s my gratitude - for all of my life, all of my experiences, all that I have learned and have yet to learn.
#2 STOP & LISTEN
If you don’t take time to STOP, to pause, to reflect you might get lost in the minutia, the stuff that you think matters, but doesn’t really. What you might discover if you stop, is that there is so much more to be experienced, to be grateful for. If you stop….. If you LISTEN… your heart will guide you to what really matters. The trick, the scary part might just be, what it’s telling you.
For so long, I didn’t stop, I didn’t listen, I was too afraid of what my heart might be telling me. That’s why number 3 is so important to me.
#3 BE KIND TO YOURSELF
Most of us are pretty kind to each other, some of us even to strangers and others to animals and beings. What about you? Are you kind to yourself? Why or why not? How is it that we can be so kind to others, show such compassion to a dear friend during a difficult time and yet….. not offer ourselves that very kindness, that much deserved compassion.Of my many lessons in these past 54 years, I suppose learning to be kind to myself required the greatest of intentions in many ways. Without intending to play any broken records about “loving yourself” - which for the record has proven to be critical in my own personal growth - I’m not sure that you can truly be kind to yourself without first doing the work and learning to love who you are, just as you are.So I encourage you to test yourself. Discover just how kind or perhaps unkind you are when it comes to you. All you have to do is practice a little GRATITUDE for who you are, STOP and LISTEN to your heart. Quiet the voice that perhaps doesn’t speak from your heart. Change that voice, its perspective toward something good, words of compassion versus words of disappointments, words of encouragement versus words of fear…. You know the words, the ones you’d say to your closest friend.My gratitude extends to the universe, for all that it offers each of us in prosperity, in health, in friendship, family and love. May your birthday bring you great joy and happiness such as mine did on this day, this year.I’d love to hear how you’re practicing GRATITUDE, how you’re learning to STOP and especially how you practice KINDNESS not only for others but for yourself.Share here if you like
Main photo credit to the wonderful, lovely and very talented Pala