In the spirit of love and joy – which is due every day, not simply on holidays dedicated to the privileged and proud – I am bringing in a past post published on gratitude; a necessary and humbling way to effect joy in and around you.

Oh, did you not know I had six pillars as part of my role as a Joy Advocate and Blogger? Oops, my bad…

This pillar discusses how important it is to seek gratitude every day. The sound of it is a little weird, right? Is gratitude hiding? Must we play a game of hide-and-seek with our thankfulness? Not a “game” per se, but yes, at times our gratitude is hiding. It can take some doing to find gratitude in depth; the gratitude your joy longs for, and your heart hides deep down inside. Yet, finding the gratitude you seek is beyond worth it.

Studies have shown that naming what you are grateful for does in fact lift spirits and spark joy. For this reason, a small jolt for the day can be found in a consistent, daily gratitude journal practice. I add consistency because without that, practices may linger here and there, with distracted doing now and then, but they eventually taper off, and where is the joy in that?

Now, choosing the layout of your gratitude journal is definitely for you. Having that autonomy to choose or create, and creative license brings a special kind of joy. As long as you are consistent with it, know that a gratitude journal helps to put – and keep – things in perspective.

Without the act of seeking gratitude, we as humans tend to focus a lot on the negative, and lose focus of what brings joy. This is natural and doesn’t make you a bad person or anything. It also doesn’t, however, paint the picture of yourself or the world that your heart longs for all the time. In spirit, joy – not necessarily positivity – is an important aspect of a life well lived. No, your days won’t always be hunky-dory, or go the way you would like, and you may not always have an amazingly beautiful outlook on life. With the current state of our world, that’s a given. You will, however, have the opportunity to make joy a permanent resident in your heart.

I don’t pretend that life doesn’t have its deep downs and drive us crazy, but at the same time, these downs strengthen us. With the right level of support and/or perspective, we can certainly uplift ourselves to a powerful place. Know that. Believe that for yourself.

While the holidays can and will be different this year, so are you. And that, at least, is something for which to be grateful.

Let me know what you are grateful for this season and beyond in the comments!!!