Motivation Monday: Gratitude Unlocks the Fullness of Life

Welcome back to Motivation Monday. (Yes, I know I've been slacking here.) As I mentioned on Friday, I really want to take advantage of cultivating gratitude in my life this month. Usually I don't like things like this that may seem cliche (I still won't be posting it every day or on my Facebook page), but I've been feeling peaks of gratitude in my life a lot over the past several months, and I want to let this all out!

Today's quote is from Melody Beattie and reads as follows:

"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."

I really do feel very thankful for so many things in my life. And I love the outlook this quote provides on gratitude unlocking all the bounty I experience each and every day. I love the simple separation of past, present, and future, and how gratitude provides a vantage point to help us benefit from everything we have, are, and will have—emotionally, physically, spiritually, etc.

So this month I will strive to recognize my many blessings and how great of a life I have. I want to embrace that I have enough. I want to appreciate and accept where I am in life. I want to welcome order and clarity and embracing my current circumstances.

I want to enhance the gratitude in my life.

Thankful For November

November 1. Who can believe that? This morning I dragged myself out of bed to make it to my 9 a.m.  U-Jam class. I definitely gave props to the attendees who made it despite all the many festivities the night before and surely the extra bit of sweets consumed. (I'm thinking I need to go on a sugar-free cleanse for a couple weeks.)

In years past holidays and such always seem to sneak up on me. I may have all kinds of thoughts and desires and what I want to do to honor, celebrate, or even enjoy certain occasions.

I've been thinking about November and Thanksgiving quite a bit the past couple weeks. Perhaps this is because my entire family is gathering in Dallas and we are all planning and looking forward to that fun.

But I decided that I want to really embrace the spirit of Thanksgiving this year and write a daily thought of gratitude. I think this blog may be the best way to do that.

So here goes.

Nov. 1: I'm grateful for my job as an instructor at the Provo Recreation Center. I've mentioned it a lot over the past several months and my time there has really always been positive and motivating. I am a part of a team that I FEEL a part of. I love all of my fellow instructors, my boss (she is amazing), and the other people I get to work with. I love the facility, the people who attend my classes, and the opportunities offered to me.

But my gratitude extends beyond those things.

My getting a job as an instructor here actually played a large roll in my recent life decisions regarding quitting my job. I had been building up my Zumba income as a way to support myself in that decision. I jumped on a couple opportunities to teach classes during the day and simply had to move forward on my plans to leavey full-time position.

I couldn't have asked for a better situation. The Provo Rec feels like home (or as close as a fitness facility can). I'm grateful for the opportunity to work there.