Gratitude is the Phoenix that rises from the ashes of forgiveness and the humbling of the ego into submission of our truth. In gratitude we find the substance of our humanity: the connection seekers and seers, healers and dreamers have sought.
And in this union the only feasible consequence of this rising is love.
When one is thankful the alchemy of gratitude is grace. Grace is the subconscious surfacing into the internal manifestation of our deepest awareness. In grace we find that all is as it should be, and that through the struggles of our hearts we can still find wholeness in our souls.
There are many traditions of gratitude, from missives to gifts, offerings to altars, poetry to prayers. The surface of the acknowledgment that comes from these rituals may seem material, but the act that is born from the ritual of thanking is cosmically profound. For it is in these rituals that we find a consciousness that reminds us of the internal and external process that occurs through gratitude.
Internally, we must embrace the need to thank our pain and our fragility with sincerity. We must acknowledge our losses and struggles so that we can meet them with their offerings. This process asks us to grieve the darkness in our souls in order to find the light within us so that every moment celebrated, every fear faced and every breath held transforms into that illumination. This is grace, that deep gratitude that can only find presence in the unveiling of our core – the place where love resides. Thereafter, our internal presence becomes one of peace. This peace is the wisdom of gratitude. It is the knowing and acceptance of the fluidity of life and the plenitude of our hearts.
Externally, the exchange of gratitude can shed the luminosity of the eyes that allow us to see another and communicate our heart’s meaning beyond literal words. When we express gratitude toward another, we are in essence saying, “I see you”. And when we are seen the inevitability of our spirit is also seen. For that moment we are offered the branch that returns us to love. Such a return becomes a cascading force that can travel from soul to soul.
And so it is, that love and gratitude are inextricable partners of the expansion of our humanity and our deep ability to embrace the fleeting gift of life. This humbling journey to gratitude can put us as much in touch with our presence as our existential reality. This reality leads us to embrace gratitude with reverence by allowing it to guide us into action.
Before anything, hold gratitude in your hand, in your eyes, in your heart for a moment and watch the rippling effect on your soul. Each time we are thankful, we not only acknowledge our ability to witness ourselves and others but we create an opportunity for connection and healing. Bring thanks to the simplest pieces of your life and engage in a relationship of soul. Thank the morning for its presence, the sun for its rising, the ache for its humanity, the smile for its kindness, the stress for its reminder, the nightfall for its quiet and the endings for bridging new life.
Treat gratitude as if it was alive. Be mindful to water it, feed it, grow it and it shall help you transition through every aspect of life. Respectively, thank yourself for those times you wished for the stars and met with disappointment. Thank yourself for those times you dreamed only to find fallen hopes. Thank yourself for the good, the laughter, the love you have allowed yourself to touch. Thank yourself for the doubts, the fears, the hurt you have traversed, and allow yourself to feel the vitality that each moment created so you could see yourself as you truly are and feel as you truly feel in your infinite authenticity.
Give gratitude to the most unattended parts of yourself. Shed the light of grace upon the times you have deceived or failed to be less than your best self. Give gratitude to your shadow moments where the monster inside you reared its head betraying the persona you have built. Give gratitude to the robes you wear in order to stand, participate and act in this journey of life. Giving gratitude in this way helps you to see every hidden part of yourself that has lived in shame, unthankful for its protection and possibility of producing a you that is whole and unconditionally loved.
Finally, allow gratitude to be the endowment of your soul. When you can fully hold yourself in gratitude, you can truly love yourself without condition. And when you can truly love yourself without condition, you can release it to others so that they feel mirrored, accepted, acknowledged and connected. In this state your inheritance becomes love and love becomes the immortal gratitude that is your freedom.
