Cherishing the Day

google images

                    "Gratitude, is the heart's memory."
                                               ~French proverb

Cherishing the Day

image from google

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.  It turns what we have into enough, and more.  It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity.  It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.  Gratitude makes sense of our past,brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow. ~ Melody Beattie


I am so grateful for Autumn it always helps me to start slowing down and rethinking what is really important.  What kind of life do I want to be living, how can I reach my dreams, and be the kind of person I want to be.  Time is flying by so fast, I want to savor the moments I have with my family and friends to cherish each day.  Our lives are so very precious, how I want to let go of all the negative and stressful and simply relax and enjoy this journey called life.

Cherishig the Day

Jane Rowley pastels

... "to express gratitude is gracious and honorable, to enact gratitude is generous and noble, but to live with gratitude ever in our hearts is to touch heaven."  Thomas S. Monson


One way I have found to try and have gratitude ever with me is to write in a gratitude journal.  It has been such a blessing in my life.  The amazing thing is how it helps in changing my perspective and when things seem so hard and nothing is going the way I had hoped and planned taking the time to write in that little gratitude journal helps me realize what is really important, and how many blessing I have been recieveing.  My perspective is changed and my attitude becomes one of hope and joy.  Instead of lack I find my life is filled with abundance.  Perhaps we can make a heaven on earth. : ) 

Cherishing the Day

 Shenandoah Valley picture from http://www.bestweekends.com/overview.php?dest=CHARLOTTESVILLE

"Very few people realize that the power of metamorphasing the ordinary lies within each of us.  One way to bring about this magic is through the art of appreciation."  Frugal Luuries~Tracy McBride

Echidnas Dancing on The Roof Tops

Echidnas Dancing on The Roof Tops
My daughter has caught the blogging bug and she has started her own blog at the link above.  Its been fun following her posts, she loves to draw anime and its fun seeing her posts about her art work.

The Power of Words

Beauty of The Mind

One of the places I would like to start beautifying  is my mind.  Its amazing to me how little dark thoughts and negative feelings can come creeping into the corners of my mind and before I know it they have come in and started having a party with out me realizing it.  Which then begins to affect how I feel about myself and my own dear world.  It can all look so dark and cloudy so quickly.

So one of the tools I've been using is my Morning pages.  Morning pages are a wonderful tool I found in the book the Artist Way by Julia Cameron.  Its were you write down every thing in your head when you first get up in the morning.  Write it all out the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Its amazing how after doing it consistently you find yourself figuring out problems, encouraging yourself and finding ways to keep going.   I've also decided to start what I call my Evening pages and what I'm doing with them is recording all the good things that happened in the day.  Write down the things that I'm grateful for.  Even if its been a super challenging day, I'm sure there is one thing to be grateful for if not two. : )  Perhaps I could find a lovely quote to ponder on so that I'm filling my mind with something beautiful. If everything else fails I believe I will simply write "Stay Calm,and Carry On"

I made my journals from the composition books you can get at Wal-Mart.   The best time to get a really good deal on them  is when they are having there back to school sales, they were only 25 cents last school year.  Then I go looking through my favorite magazines and find pictures that inspire me.  Then paste them on.  After I have the pictures  looking just the way I want them I cover my journals with contact paper to help them last longer.  Ta da!  I then have my own personalized journals.