By Allison Okuneye
Y
ou see it everywhere you go, on t-shirts, facebook cover photos, coffee mugs, and home decor. The concept of gratitude has surrounded us like never before. Even with the constant reminders all around us, it shocks me how many people have trouble with the actual practice of gratitude. We live in a time where we are constantly comparing our lives to the lives of our friends/coworkers and total strangers, so it is no wonder why some of us have a hard time focusing on what we DO have instead of what we don’t have. Each of us have an overabundance of things that we can be grateful for. Let me say that again for those in the back...EACH OF US HAVE AN OVERABUNDANCE OF THINGS THAT WE CAN BE GRATEFUL FOR!! The key to living a full life, is the ability to see the positives in each season of our lives. This year has been devastating for so many people and for different reasons. In the midst of this tough time, we have the opportunity to practice real gratitude.
Gratitude is an everyday CHOICE and it takes daily, moment to moment practice. For example, in moments of
16 November | December 2020
frustration at work you can pause and be grateful for the ability to work, or be grateful that you have a job, or even a moment of gratitude for your work bestie who brightens your day!
There are SOO many situations big and small that we can practice our gratitude, but it is up to each of us to make it a priority. In the name of FULL transparency, this past year has been difficult on my marriage. At the beginning of the year I bought a gratitude journal and made an effort to follow the daily prompts. This daily practice was helpful in multiple ways. It helped refocus my energy and instead of letting negative feelings consume me, I was able to focus on the positives and that helped lift my spirits and start my day off on the right foot.
I will never forget one night, after a long argument with my husband, I went in my office in an attempt to cool off. I found myself reading over my gratitude journal and who do you think was on almost every page...my husband. As much as I wanted to stay mad at him and focus on my FEELINGS in that moment....the FACTS (in my own words) were right in front of my face. I needed that reminder in
