Hi there!  I apologize for not having posted for almost a month….man the time passes quickly.  Life becomes incredibly hectic in the fall for some reason.  I can’t quite figure out why.

I hope you’ve all had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  Today’s post was written by a good friend of mine – Jennifer Ryan of I Choose Change.  Her message is an important one and, when taken to heart, will change YOUR life.  Wise, wise words….enjoy!

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Giving Thanks for Unpaid Bills (and Other Acts of Kindness)

It’s only fitting that in this week of Thanksgiving, we talk about giving thanks and having gratitude.  While some may view this week as chaotic, stressful, and anxious-ridden with extended family, my hope for you is that you give thanks for the abundance, prosperity, peace, and joy in your life.

Giving thanks really means being thankful for the gifts you have in your life.  If you don’t already view the things in your life as a gift, try shifting your focus from what you DON’T have to what you DO have.  You can even do this in the midst of chaos and when your life is feeling particularly stressful.  Even mounting bills are things to be thankful for.  The vendors behind those bills have provided a lifestyle for you that you wouldn’t otherwise have had.  Your bills are a gift.  That’s an example of a true shift in focus.

As soon as you start feeling grateful and happy about the things you have, you will start to attract and have more blessings in your life.

Everybody goes through things they don’t like and times that are hard, but it’s those who remain grateful and thankful for what they DO have, who have true joy, peace, and abundance in their lives.  Start to see EVERYTHING as the gift that it is.

There is a distinction to be made between happiness and gratitude.  They are not the same, although we sometimes use them interchangeably.  To be grateful means giving thanks for something that’s been given as a gift.  It can be a person in our life that was giving, or nature, or God.  It was such a surprise to me this time last year as I pulled up to the window of Starbucks for my traditional “Non-fat, Peppermint, No-whip Caffe Mocha” (I recommend the drink wholeheartedly!), the car in front of me had paid for my drink!  I tried to get a glimpse of them, but I didn’t catch them in time and they sped away.  The person working in the window said, “They told me to tell you Happy Holidays!”  It was such a treat.  I felt grateful for the gift of not only the drink, but the thoughtfulness.

Contrary to feeling grateful, happiness would be something one just feels good about.  You can be happy that it’s sunny outside, or grateful that the sunshine has been provided (the gift of sunshine!).  You can be happy to have an extra $100 in the bank, but grateful that the extra money has been given as a gift.  You get the point.

Having gratitude means being content.  Being thankful and grateful leads to more contentment.  Conversely, continually wanting more and more external things leads to the feeling of emptiness and unhappiness.  It is human to want more, but that does not keep you from growing and evolving; it’s easy to get trapped by the feeling of not having enough in your life.  To be content, get out of the rut of wanting more, more, more, and just experience that right now, in this moment, you are satisfied and content.

Research shows that “daily gratitude exercises resulted in higher reported levels of alertness, enthusiasm, determinism, optimism, and energy.”  According to Michael McCullough of Southern Methodist University, “Anyone can increase their sense of well-being and create positive social effects just by counting their blessings.”

So for this week, give thanks, have gratitude, and experience the overwhelming abundance, peace, and joy pouring into your life.

© 2008 I Choose Change

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR EZINE OR WEB SITE? No problem, as long as you include the following blurb at the conclusion of the article:  I Choose Change Counselors are helping you live according to your Spiritual Core Self. If you’re interested in having a more fulfilled, balanced, and purposeful personal and professional life, get your FREE information now at http://www.ichoosechange.com.

UPDATE: I’m sorry to say that Dennis Prager’s radio shows can no longer be accessed for free.  As of March 31st, 2009, he started charging $6.95/mo or $54.95/yr for commercial-free access to his shows. This gives access to a “backlog of 3 weeks” plus “all kinds of bonus features.” The good news is that access to programs he recorded prior to March 31st is still available and free of charge!  So listen to some and see if you feel the cost is worth it for you.  Just use the link below…

A friend of mine introduced me to Dennis Prager. That is, I was introduced to his radio shows.

Are you familiar with him? He can be heard on the radio or online (his shows can be accessed via iTunes, too) and he speaks on many different topics.  Personally, I prefer listening to him via his website or iTunes so I can fast forward through the commercials! You can find his list of shows here, organized by date.

One of his shows is called The Male/Female hour. This used to be broadcast every Wednesday but it doesn’t seem to be happening that regularly recently.  At any rate, I highly recommend it.

The Male/Female Hour focuses on Male and Female behaviors and interactions. Be aware – since Dennis is a man, he speaks from the point of view of a man (of course!).  His goal with this show is (mostly) to let women know how men think and act and why.  Hearing what he has to say has enlightened me considerably.  I wish I’d heard these things many many years ago! Anyway, I’m glad this information and his ideas are available to me now.  I feel that I will be a better partner either in a dating relationship and/or in marriage for having listened.

I DO wish there was a female counterpart for Dennis Prager. I would love for men to hear the same sort of advice & information given from a female perspective.  Anyone want to try their hand at that?

Dennis Prager is a Jewish man. (Not all wisdom comes from Catholics.  :0) ) He has very conservative and traditional points of view.  Let me say that I personally don’t agree with everything he says but I do agree with the majority of what I’ve heard from him.  His advice is sound and and at times eye opening.

Please listen to a couple of his Male/Female Hours (which only last about 30 minutes when accessed via his website and skipping the commercials) and then come back here and let me know what you think. Be candid…I’m interested in YOUR point of view.

Warmly,

Manya

He also has a show on Fridays called The Happiness Hour on which he talks about how to be happy or, conversely, how to not be unhappy or depressed. I’ve not listened to this yet so if you do, please let me know if it’s also something that can be recommended here.  Given that we’ve all been made exceedingly unhappy  (and some of us thrown into depression) for varying periods of time by separation and divorce, this show could be very worthwhile.

I hope the day is as beautiful in your part of the world as it is here this morning!  The hills are calling to me to come up for another hike but I think I’d better keep the hooky playing to no more than once/week.  :0)

I just wanted to let you know that I have a habit of  going back to my most recent post time and again to tweak it here and there.  Sometimes, after seeing it ‘in print’ and thinking through things some more, my ideas or point of view might change a little bit or I think of a different way to say something so I go back in to change the post to reflect that.

So, just giving you a heads up that if you read a post the day I put it up and then come back at another time and skim through it again and wonder why you remember it differently, well, you’re not having a ‘senior’ moment…chances are that it WAS different when you first read it.

Forgive me if you find this irritating.  I’ll try to keep it to a minimum.

Have a lovely day!

Manya