Give Gratitude Forward: A Personal Practice for Life
—Julie M. Daley

If you think gratitude doesn't have a thing to do with creativity, you're probably not alone. Many believe gratitude is something we have for what has already happened. Gratitude and appreciation almost always is focused on the past.

Many times, we aren't present enough, in the moment, to what we are receiving to be grateful for it as it comes. But even more often, we don't think of, feel, or express gratitude for what is to come in the future. How can we be grateful for what hasn't even happened yet? Who knows how good (or bad) it really might be? I mean, how can we be grateful for something if we don't yet know we are happy it has happened. Sounds sort of like a Zen Koan...confusing and confounding...but it's not.

When you naturally feel and express deep gratitude for all of life and its inherent intelligence and abundance, you are opening your heart and soul to this creative force. You remember you are in the flow of life and touch in again with all that supports you. This flow is there all the time, even when you don't remember. It is a grateful, open heart that re-opens and re-connects you to this creative flow.

When you start with deep true gratitude for what is, you connect your own creative nature to that of everything around you. Acknowledging that there is a deeper intelligence and that it is at work in every moment, invites in the infinite possibilities inherent in each moment.

To look forward with gratitude for what is to be, and yet to come, can require a shift in perspective. For most of us, gratitude is saved for the "good" things that happen to us. We are taught that a good life is only filled with "good" things, so we are grateful only when we perceive we are getting the good. This is a favorite perspective of the Voice of Judgment (VOJ) for it smacks of the idea that each of us knows best what should happen in our lives. This notion means we believe we ultimately have more intelligence that the Universe.

When we are grateful up front, our gratitude is a reflection of the faith and trust our deeper nature has in the world's infinite abundance and creative nature. The Universe is creative by nature, and because each of us is a creation of the Universe, we, too, are creative by nature.

It also requires that we allow for equanimity, the ability to be with the apparent ups and downs of life. The world is a wondrous place. Life is intelligent. It is only when the Voice of Judgment tries to exert its control over this intelligence, that worry and anxiety overrun the infinite possibilities of life. By having firm expectations about what you will let in your life, you limit Life's ability to co-create your future with you.

Allow yourself to have a new relationship with gratitude. Start with your own gratitude practice by trying out the play-with practice below, Give Gratitude Forward! Notice how it changes your outlook and how it opens you to the creative flow that is always around you.

 

The Practice: Give Gratitude Forward!

The unthankful heart... discovers no mercies; but let the thankful heart sweep through the day and, as the magnet finds the iron, so it will find, in every hour, some heavenly blessings! ~Henry Ward Beecher

"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

Both of these quotes speak to something not mentioned often: that gratitude for what is to come is a powerful use of this important feeling and emotion. When we use a gratitude practice to show faith in the possibilities available in every moment, it becomes a way to fully support your biggest dreams and visions as well as those of the world.

For most of us, a new gratitude practice must be followed at least once a day to get us into the "habit" of seeing what we are grateful for, acknowledging it to ourselves and others, and in some way showing our gratitude to that which is greater than us (be it God, the Universe, our global community, or whatever speaks to you). This builds gratitude awareness and action. The daily practice puts you into a state of grace, a state where your heart is open and ready to allow co-creation with the flow of creativity. It also generates happiness, wonder, and eagerness for the day to come, and along with it, the willingness to be an active participant in bringing into being the vision you hold for your life and for the greater world.

Follow these steps as you begin your practice. With time, personalize them as necessary. Play with your practice...see what works, what doesn't. Do more of what works, less of what doesn't.

1. Begin a gratitude journal.
   
   Write as often as necessary to capture your authentic gratitude, whether that be daily, hourly, as the impulse strikes, or as often as your heart tells you to.
   
2. Notice what you are truly grateful for.
   
   Sometimes we go through the motions of feeling gratitude for what we have been taught to be grateful for. There is no mistaking authentic gratitude. You can feel it in your heart. It stirs your soul. Authentic gratitude expands your heart, empowers you to reach out and acknowledge those on the other end of your gratitude, and puts you into the creative flow.
   
3. Write, call or visit those you are grateful for. It only takes a moment to do this, but the effects are immeasurable for everyone involved.
   
4. Give gratitude forward.
   
   Experience and express gratitude for what is yet to come. This is best done first thing in the morning. I have found it puts me in a state of eagerness to begin the day rather than thinking of all I have to do and everything that could go wrong.
   
   Your VOJ may tell you this is easier said than done, but don't believe it. Your VOJ may very likely pipe up with all of its messages about the future and the unknown, questioning how you can possibly happy for what hasn't yet happened, but you don't have to let this voice run the show. Notice it, acknowledge it, then allow yourself to let wonder and curiosity enter in.
   
   This is where our first creativity tool comes in, "Have Faith in your Creativity", meaning your ability to not only handle the unknown, but Thrive! in the unknown.
   
   Your new day is filled with possibility. It has not yet been written. You get to co-create it with everything around you.
   
5. Give thanks to yourself for all that you are and all that you are becoming.
   
   This is a very important part of a gratitude practice. It is also very healing to thank your VOJ for the ways in which it learned to cope with the unknown when you were very young. It believes it has your best interest at heart. While you no longer have to make your choices based on the VOJ's perspective of fear and control, it can quiet the VOJ to acknowledge it and express love for yourself.
   
6. Hold a monthly gratitude circle with friends, family, or anyone else you feel called to be with. Notice where your experience is similar and where it is unique. How does sharing your practice with others change your experience?

I would love to hear from you about how your practice went (julie@wildlycreativewomen.com). Remember, the point is to play-with your experience. As a result of your practice, notice how your experience changes. What is different? Journaling and reflecting helps make changes in your experience more apparent.

 

copyright 2004-2005 Julie M Daley and Creative Wellspring. all rights reserved.
Limited duplication or distribution allowed with prior permission from and credit to Julie M Daley and Creative Wellspring.

return to top