I was thinking (again) the other day on my run about the "feeling of gratitude." "is gratitude really a feeling?" i thot to myself. and then an idea popped into my head... nothing major... just a simple idea. when I am grateful for something or about something, what exactly do i experience? how do i feel? what do i think about? and the answers to those questions (in order), i found were: 1. I experience joy, happiness... gratitude? :); 2. i feel happy... i feel glad... i feel at peace... i feel excited... i also feel calm - perhaps it's peaceful -hence, the previous note of feeling "at peace"; 3. I think about what i'm grateful for... i think about why i'm grateful for the object of my gratitude... i circle back and think about how i feel... i think about the moments that remind me of those feelings....
Is there any time that we are grateful, yet NOT happy? CAN we be grateful w/o being happy? then i wondered... when we're happy about/for something... does that mean automatically that we are grateful? when i watch a comedy sitcom and i laugh... does that mean i'm grateful for the joke, funny comment, etc? when I see my son learn new things and I get all excited and happy for him... am i grateful for the experience i witnessed? so far, they have been all yeses for my questions posed about when i feel happy. so i wonder... is all gratitude really just happiness?
in the new agey world of LOA... when we are told to be grateful... isn't that just another way of saying be happy? i'm beginning to believe so. "be happy for... (insert blank)... in our lives".. is THE way to express instant gratitude.
what are you happy about in your life? what are you happy for in your experiences?
I'm happy for my loving wife and son...
i'm happy for my optimal health that i discovered and have beneftitted from and maintain...
I'm happy about living in such a wonderful city and living so close to the beach!
I'm LOVING my flexible schedule!
I'm always happy about feeling happy everyday, despite my challenging (but temporary) circumstances...
I'm happy that i have a car that works and can take me wherever i need whenever i need at my whim!
I'm happy for the access to the internet and tv - such convenient and wonderful technologies to have on whim!
I'm happy I live in the U.S.... despite the world of uncertainty and challenges that surround us.
I'm happy to have discovered AR's tech and the community sprouted from his teachings.
I'm definitely happy for the computer i have access to right now so that I may express my happiness (and gratitude) with this group!
I LOVE MY LIFE... don't you? if not everything, can you find a lot of other things that you can love about your life?? if i can... you certainly can!
the quality of our life is determined by what we focus on, indeed!
g'nite!
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