Gratitude for You

In this season of gratitude, it is rare to spend much time reflecting on what we are grateful for about ourselves. We will include thanks for good health but don’t often go deeper into appreciating who we are at our core – our gifts, inner resources, and contributions. In fact, there are ingrained societal and cultural taboos against it.

When it comes to thinking about ourselves, we are much better at identifying our shortcomings. There are countless tracking systems, tests, and models to tell us where we could use improvement. We have this backwards.

In your contemplation this season, take some time to reflect on the gifts, resources, and character qualities that you are grateful for about yourself. What do you appreciate about who you are, the experience you bring, and contributions that you’ve made. Be specific.

These resources aren’t accidental or arbitrary. They did not arrive in a tidy parcel with directions included. We work to strengthen them, often through extremely difficult situations. They develop through a commitment to stay in when the going gets tough, while continuing to learn and grow along the way.

Chance, luck, and fortune all favor the prepared. We prepare by knowing what our gifts and resources are and that we can rely on them in any situation. We are fully capable of meeting whatever comes to our gate no matter what guise it presents.

Here in California we prepare for the possibility of an earthquake by assembling essential items: food, blankets, communication devices, and first aid supplies. That kit could also include the inner resources of flexibility, creativity, compassion, and generosity. Good things to have in a crisis.

Don’t hide your natural gifts, waiting for someone else to notice them. Know who you are, trust your own experience, and honor the gifts that you bring.

Today I give thanks for: this soul and this body – the structure that continues to support the manifestation of my dreams, loves, adventures, and growth.

I give thanks for my gifts of artistry, vision, integration, hospitality, and humor. For my courage, resiliency, curiosity, resourcefulness, and faith. For my pathological optimism and trusting my own wisdom.

We will be exploring our true nature in more depth in my new program, Women at the Well. If this speaks to you, act now. Limited seats left.

COME TO THE WELL