Practice

How To Practice Gratitude And Benefit From Its Magic

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Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.

the Bible, Matthew 13:12.

This is a famous quote from a famous book, the Bible, Matthew 13:12.

Gratitude is a practice, a skill. It means to retake knowledge of certain things that you are enjoying or you have enjoyed. It is the ability to be aware by choice.

Dear readers of Positive Words Research, I will show you the power and magic of gratitude from the light of two aspects:

1. How I’ve discovered the power and magic of gratitude

Since 17 years old I write my thoughts. At the beginning I wrote on paper, filling many notebooks. Then I’ve written my thoughts in Word and further on various blogs. After some years I started reading my past writings. I saw that I have written about beautiful things but also a lot about tensioned moments in my life. There were a lot of pages filled with negative emotions such as anger, sadness, even grief, and depression on some pages, disappointment, powerlessness, and even self-hate. While reading these pages written by the younger me, I noticed something. Every time my younger me felt some relief, some light, some hope it was in the moments I was being thankful for something.

On every page full of tension there were one or two sentences where I was saying something like:

  • Yes, but I am thankful that I got into faculty;
  • Yes, but I am grateful that I have a cat;
  • Yes, but I am grateful that I have a job;
  • Yes, but I am thankful that I was promoted;
  • Yes, but I am grateful that even if I couldn’t spend Christmas with my parents and brother, because of all the arguing and fights in my family, I got to spend a lovely Christmas with the family of my best friend;

I realized that I was practicing gratitude unconsciously. Currently, I am of the opinion that every human being is practicing gratitude to some degree. One can not live a human life without practicing some kind of being grateful. But, you either practice gratitude:

  1. unconsciously, in a small way or bigger way, depending on your inheritance and education, or;
  2. consciously, in a small way or bigger way, depending on your awareness and power of choice.

I started practicing gratitude consciously during 2012. The stepping stone in my transition was the book The Magic written by Rhonda Byrne. Through this book Rhonda taught me why gratitude matters and how to practice it.

To make a beautiful note: while practicing some exercises from the book, I’ve arrived on the website TheFreeDictionary.com, clicked on the related words of the word gratitude and discovered the world of positive words. This stepping stone drove me to start making this website, Positive Words Research.

Rhonda starts her book with a quote: “Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.”. Yes, it is the same quote as above. She says that the meaning of this quote is better understood when you read it like this:

“Whoever has gratitude will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have gratitude, even what he has will be taken away from him.”

This makes me think of a Romanian old saying:

“To the ungrateful one, life takes back the gift that was given.”

Gratitude is the land on which all other positive emotions will flourish. To benefit on long-term of positive emotions, practice gratitude.

2. Examples of how I practice gratitude

  1. The gratitude rock. I took a small stone that looked interesting to me. I am placing this stone in places where I can easily bump into her: in my pocket, on the table near my bed or near the flowing tap water in my house. Every time I see the gratitude rock I make myself think of something I am grateful for. Sometimes I think of more things I am grateful for in my life.
  2. The gratitude exercises before falling asleep. After going to sleep and before falling asleep I think of nine things I am grateful for that happened that day: 3 related to myself, 3 related to events during the day and 3 related to the work I do in my job. After remembering all these nine aspects, I choose the best thing that happened to me that day.
  3. Writing appreciations on paper. I write appreciations and gratitudes on paper for every aspect of my life. I do this exercise especially for the tensioned things in my life. It could be a memory, an event that happened recently or I feel some tension towards a person.
  4. I bless and thank every object around me. I pick a moment during the day and whatever is around me I say thanks to it.
  5. While I walk I pick a moment and for every step that I make I say thank you.

In conclusion, I want you to remember two aspects:
1. Practice gratitude for tensioned things in your life; write a list of ten appreciations for the memory, event or person for whom you feel tension;
2. Practice gratitude to benefit on long-term of positive emotions.

 “Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues but the parent of all others.” ~ Marcus Tullius Cicero

About the Author

calin-elena

Elena Calin is the person behind Positive Words Research. During 2013 she started researching positive words and begin building this site. You can contact her using the contact form from this website or become friends with her on Facebook.

Positive Words Research – How To Practice Gratitude And Benefit From Its Magic

Practice Your Spelling by Kari Erkkila: Inspiring Words

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The idea that words have power is still new to me. I have loved playing with words to tell stories and make rhymes since I was a young girl, but it wasn’t until recently that I started to realize that words have power.  I shouldn’t be surprised. I learned in Sunday School, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (John 1:1).  Words are the foundation of our reality. Everything we see in the world is a manifestation of a thought, and thoughts are made up of words. If we choose positive words, then we can create a positive world. It’s that simple.

When I came across the list from Positive Word Research, I started brainstorming all the different ways I could use the words. The first idea was inspired by the water experiment by Dr. Emoto. He discovered that consciousness can affect the molecular structure of water. Water infused with positive intention formed beautiful crystalline forms when frozen.

I started by selecting a few words from the list and writing them on a post-it note. I would stick the word on a mason jar full of water and put it out on the deck so the sun could infuse the energy of the word into the water.  I would drink the blessed water and let the positive energy electrify my veins.

Then, one evening I was sipping my infused water as I relaxed at the kitchen counter. My doodle pad, Sharpie, and word-list happen to be right next to me. I picked up the pen and started writing the words in alphabetical order. What happened next was amazing. I got in a groove and just started writing. I started playing with each word as an individual art form. I copied each word in different styles and flourishes.  It made me appreciate the nuances of each word, as if each word had it’s own flavor. I would visualize the quality of each word, and feel the feeling that each word evoked as the pen scrolled across the paper. The words became me.

God Love

It shouldn’t surprise me. Our stores are filled with adult coloring books and markers. Social media is full of articles on the meditative practice of coloring. But I found something different about doodling the words. Maybe it is because words access a different part of our brain than coloring does. Maybe it is because it is so simple, you can   do it anywhere. (All you need is a blank paper, a pen, and words. No need to tote around a hefty book, or box of colored pencils.)  Or maybe it is because the words truly do have power. And with each stroke of the pen, I am infusing my spirit with the essence of each word I write. There is something so soothing, so therapeutic, and yet so simple about just sitting down and writing the words. As a writer,  I also noticed that it is a nice break to relax and pluck the words directly from the word list. No need to stretch my brain for words.  They are already there for me to draw from. Each word is it’s own vessel of positivity.

As I write this, it feels like the words are magic. And in fact they are. A magic “spell” is the very act of using words to manifest a desire. It’s inherent in the actual word, “spell” as in to spell a word or cast a spell.  So by  “spelling” these positive words, we are casting our own positive spells. It gives new meaning to the idea of spelling practice.

I am still exploring ways to use the fabulous words found in this treasury. (Did you notice how I tried to infuse the above sentence with more positive words? Another fun way to use the word-list in everyday interactions!)

Infusing our life with a bevy of positive words, can only help us to create a positive world. I am going to call this art, “spelling practice.”  By using these words in our journals, in our conversation, in our thoughts, we are building our positivity muscles. And the more we continue to practice, the more we are infusing the world with our positive energies. The world can’t help but become a better place. Let us start practicing our spelling, and cast spells of love! Namaste.

—  Kari Erkkila

Kari Erkkila is an explorer of the world, and enjoying the process of discovering the powerful impact positive words can make in our lives. Follow me on Instagram as Skurlfriend. Facebook as Kari Erkkila, and watch for her forthcoming blog.

Hand_Written_Positive_Words

Awesome 65 Positive Meditation Practices To Enjoy Now

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Meditation gives you peace of mind. Find here more than 65 positive meditation practices. Also find which is the simplest form of meditation.

Let’s keep it short. The simplest form of meditation is the following: stay, don’t say any word and smile scanning the organs in your body. You can do this in any place you are if you have the opportunity to stay and not do anything. While working or driving this meditation can not be done. But if you are in the subway or traveling with the train or in the back of a car you can simply do this meditation. It is so easy and it improves the health of your mind and body.

Find here more than 65 positive meditation practices:

Meditation gives you peace of mind