An abundance of gratitude - A key to happiness

Say it with me.

Gratitude. It's a wonderful word, one of my favorites actually. And I can only hope to persuade you into thinking the same. Because once you do, your life will begin to change.

Allow me to shed some light on this subject, if you will. The word gratitude comes from the Latin root 'gratus,' meaning "pleasing, welcome, agreeable" And as everyone knows, it's definition means to be thankful and to show appreciation.

When we start to be grateful and show appreciation for what we have, we'll start to see there is SO much to be thankful for. Now, I'm not saying you will have a perfect day everyday. Life just doesn't work that way. But, it helps to keep you in a better, healthier mindset so it's easer to overcome the bad days, and be ready for happier ones.

How it works

What really helped me to have a new look on life, was the day I walked into a Books-a-million store with my mom, and bought a book, titled "The Secret." (There is also a movie if you fancy that to paper. Whatever works best for you.) In a very short summery, it talks about how you can shape your very reality, your very life into how you truly want it to be!

All you have to do is start being grateful for what you already have. Begin to enjoy the little things that this extraordinary world has to offer. When you wake up in the morning, try to recall at least 10 things that you're grateful for, for 30 days. When you start to think of a negative thought, try to redirect your thinking. At first this might seem hard, but be dismayed. Because this is where you can really have fun! Think of every aspect of your life. Relationships, Wealth, Health, Romance, just to name a few.

Sit down, with paper and pen in hand, and write down what you would really like to have. Then, feel as grateful as if you already have it. Now this is where your 'feelings' take a spot into this process.

You may be thinking, "How in the world am I going to monitor my thoughts?" Well, there is an easier way to this step, and it how you feel. Let me ask you a question, "What brings you joy? Is it the work that you do? Nature walks? Singing? Spending time with loved ones? Exercising? Drinking coffee?" Whatever your answer is, do more of it!

(As long as its positive and good.) The more you pay attention to the good things, it will make the bad things seem less and less.

The Secret, The Power, The Magic, Hero - Books by Rhonda Byrne

There are three other books that I know of, that go hand in hand with The Secret. I have read, The Magic and The Secret, and both are wonderful reads. I have yet to read, The Power and Hero. They are still on my TBR List (To be read list.) When I have the pleasure of reading them, I will be happy to make a post and tell you all about it. But back to what we've been talking about.

The book/movie also states, that you should really put in the effort to visualize what you really want. It could be a new car, a lover, a career, ect. If you can visualize it, you can materialize it. (I know how it sounds, believe you me.) And you are probably saying, "It's just positive thinking" But it's not, I assure you. The books (and movie) both talk about actual scientific evidence, that points to this discovery.

"Where energy flows, attention go's." It has become a universal law. The Law of Attraction. In fact, if I were to list everything mentioned, this blog post would be a mile long. So, you will just have to read the book or watch the movie yourself. :)

Believe in yourself

If your are interested, you can find the movie for free on YouTube. Just click here. If you would like to purchase the book, I can give you a link here Although this is just one place to buy it at. And if this isn't your forte, that's perfectly fine too. Alas, it doesn't hurt to try! And you'll at least have a better look on life after the program and/or read.

For me, certain things have made a drastic difference in my life, that I happen to think was because of learning the Secret. Of course, I didn't know at the time, that was precisely what I was doing! Both my mom and myself had brought things into our lives that made us signifyingly happier. There was a time, when my Mom was in need of work, and so nothing else was more on our minds.

Until one day when we ventured into a small town, and found just that. We were about to pass by a shop, that happened to be in the need of a professional painter, and cleaner for homes. This is where we met a handful of kind people who we just instantly clicked with. And my mom got the job!

From there, our next step was to find a nice home so we could move from where we were. You see, there happened to be a home for rent, by non other by one of the men we met that day in the shop, and he just so happened to need someone to paint and clean it up. Well, my mom didn't hesitate to help out.

We made plans to visit the place, in a few months time, we were settled in on Christmas eve! A home as a present, that's the way we looked at it. One of the strangest and yet astounding things about this, was that the same house we moved into, was the very same one we drove by a time or two. My mom and I thought it would be so wonderful to live there, and maybe paint it a mint green, bluish color. This happened to be the color that the man we rented from only had to paint it. We were overjoyed!

Another time, (right before the previous had happened) was that we wanted to move to Florida, whereas we were in Michigan at the time. I wanted a decent school, where I could make friends and not get bullied... Certain times were hard, but we kept hope, and kept our minds close to our goals and good things. And you know what, that's exactly what happened. I found a great Middle/Highschool, made friends and wonderful memories. We still live in Florida today, enjoying every second of it.

A day in my life

In a nutshell, I've started one of my dream careers, as an Author. You may have heard of these novels as: The Traveling Coffee Shoppe series, The Highlands Of Ireland Myth and Magic, (soon to be series) and The Golden Key Mysteries series. Speck And The Great Big Storm and Speck's Spooktacular Halloween, (both kids books, & illustrated by yours truly.) If you would like to purchase one, I'll leave a link here from one of many stores that carry them.

In my free time, I paint and enjoy photography. For one day I hope to excel those two passions and immerse them into my career. I still use the Secret within my daily routines, to stay optimistic for the life and dreams I hope to have.

To sum up everything, you never know what might become about. Therefore I urge you to think on the bright side, to trust in yourself enough to seize opportunities that will bring you joy. Remember, The secret of your future is hidden in your daily routine. Nothing changes, if nothing changes. Before I go, I'll leave a list of affirmations below to help get you on the right track.

Thank you for dropping by to read my post. May you all have a lovely week. Until next time, Xx. - A

Positive Affirmations for life

1. I am healthy and full of energy.

2. I am the creator of my own life.

3. I am grateful for all of the amazing things that I have, will, and continue to receive.

4. I have so much to offer the world.

5. I attract positivity, success and good people around me.

(All rights to any book mentioned by Rhonda Byrne go to her. She is one of my favorite authors.)