I actually remember a turning point of realisation for me. I had always thought I had appreciated what was around me BUT now I understand that I wasn't fully recognising the true gifts the Universe and the world we live in has to offer.
It was the moment I started my gratitude journal and consciously started noting every time I came across something wondrous in my day that my life seemed to manifest onto a different road, shifting up into a higher gear. Cruising along this road was so much more pleasurable, and comfortable, and remarkably the more I worked with appreciation and gratitude the better the places I was taken.
Initially training myself to 'notice the details' was something I needed to work on. I mean, seriously, when life is challenging, when everyday is fraught with issues of one sort or another spanning more than you think you are capable of dealing with it actually IS something you need to train yourself to do. I can guarantee you that it is well worth the effort though.
Releasing the negativity, learning to exist in optimistic assertive positivism.
When starting out, or stepping it up to the next level, with this change in your life consider working with a gratitude journal. Write down 5 things EVERY day that you appreciate, that you are grateful for. This is best down before you sleep as your sub-conscious mind mulls over what you have been thinking about in the last 10-15 minutes before you sleep and you will wake the next day as a follow through, feeling the effects of this thinking. You can only imagine how over a period of time this positive energy culminates and benefits you!
Here are some of the details I found myself noticing and writing about in my own gratitude journal:
How beautiful my kids laughter was, their smiles, the people they were growing into. Such an incredible experience every day with them, the good and the bad
Family, nieces, nephews and little comments that would warm my heart
Friends; conversation and laughter, what they individually bought to my life
The magic of the world up close
New growth
Bugs in the garden
Textures
Colours
The way shadows fell making interesting shapes
Clouds! Look up, lay on your back in the grass and just watch as the clouds move and shape and change, magical
The sunshine and how amazing it feels on my skin
Being caught in the rain and just laughing about it
Sunsets and sunrises, what a gift!
The way a candle flickers and dances, or similarly with incense smoke
Kind words from strangers, even just a random smile, a kind gesture
The feel of the ocean as it lapped over my feet
I could probably go on all day about what I am grateful for daily!
If you are in a difficult situation, if each day is a struggle and you find yourself constantly on the negative then I encourage you to do what it takes to turn that around.
If you are living life and want to take it into a higher vibration aligned to abundance then I encourage you to work with gratitude also.
If you REALLY struggle, there is this, but work with it gently for I don't recommend self-harm, just a way to help yourself stay on track. I have heard of a technique that is very cheap and easy to implement ... it is called 'rubber band therapy'. Basically you put a rubber band around your wrist (not too tight and not too loose!) and every time you have a negative thought or something slips out of your mouth that is not positive you flick yourself with the band. Its a quick and effective way to teach yourself positive thinking if you need physical encouragement!
Keep correcting the thoughts, the actions and the speech patterns. Work with affirmations, balancing and grounding meditations. You are worth the effort and the initial hard work will pay off. Commitment to self and desire to exist in a better space is all that is needed here.
It can be a long road sometimes, but by taking baby steps it does not feel so daunting. Try anything to keep yourself moving in a forward direction, over time you will find life around you improving and through that improvement clarity and direction. I know I did <3
