Hopeservations

Gratitude From a Southern Latitude

“Cultivate the habit of being grateful.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Hey y’all, Hope here…another day & another Hopeservation, only this one is about a topic that I hold very near and dear to my heart and I would be so grateful if you take the time to read and consider it.

In fact, this Hopeservation is about the vital importance of just that…GRATITUDE.

So I first wrote a piece about gratitude back in January 2018, not because it was the first time I had ever thought about it or even written about it!

Heck, I often post lists of things I am grateful for on my social media’s!

Yet, I think I keep coming back to it mainly because life can be a WHIRLWIND!!!

It’s easy to start taking for granted all the little things that make life great, as we get lost in the big picture! Over time, people start to forget all the things they actually have to be grateful for.

I know I sure can and I don’t want to ever forget, but that’s just me! And hey, these years, they are going by pretty fast! Life is precious and I’m doing my best not to waste it! 

Does that mean everything is perfect and every moment is a moment of a lifetime?

Ummm…no!

I have had just as many traumas, trials and tribulations, sorrows and struggles as the next person. And yeah, even the hum drum dull, boring moments in between.

After all, this is LIFE!

It can get you down pretty quickly if you spend too much time narrowing in on all that is wrong!

So…I don’t know about you but I work hard not to do that…and it can be a mental exercise!

My method?

FLIP THE SWITCH!

Guess what?

It works!  

Research tells us that those who write about gratitude are more optimistic and feel better about their lives. Most studies published on this topic support an association between gratitude and an individual’s well-being.

So there must be something to it! 

The way I look at it, it all boils down to TIME!

Time spent being grateful or time spent begrudging.

Ultimately the choice is up to each person. We all do the same similar tasks, face the same similar goals, broken hearts, grief, setbacks, hurdles, and changes…

Some situations take us longer to heal from than others. Be it emotional, spiritual, and/or physical.

Maybe we never fully heal, but if we live with bitterness, we’ll never fully move forward from that place of pain and time will be wasted.

Time can be spent lots of ways. It will tick tock by no matter what. So why not find the moments that make your heart soar with gratitude and hold on tight! The choice is yours!

Because everything I do, I do for for my little cosmos…mostly that entails me and my family and those in my day to day world that I can impact through service. I do what I do for the moments we’ve been blessed with. I make my choices because I don’t want to miss or take anything for granted and I definitely don’t want any REGRETS!

I am filling my life with things that put a smile on my face and here are just a few that I am grateful for;

• Grateful for sprinkles on my donuts!

• Grateful for summer days & nights.

• Grateful for three children, growing, flourishing and enjoying their time together!

• Grateful for a husband of 20+ years, that loves and accepts me, unconditionally.

• Grateful for loved ones who’s passings I may grieve yet who’s memories I will forever cherish.

• Grateful for family, near & far.

• Grateful for friends who truly value the importance of a friendship and show up for one another.

• Grateful to recognize that the most important things in life, aren’t things!

• Grateful for the freedom to make choices on how we want to spend our time.

• Grateful for gorgeous sunrises, amazing sunsets and the ability to enjoy both!

• Grateful to walk barefoot and wear dresses!

• Grateful to live on the coast of Florida.

• Grateful for a career that is a calling I am passionate about.

• Grateful for this very real life we create everyday.

• Grateful to wake every morning to peaceful surroundings.

• Grateful to God and the Universe for all my blessings, however humble.

Life can be simple and still so incredibly magical.

It’s simply about the mindset.

So do what you do, but do it with JOY, do it with PASSION, and above all else – do it with GRATITUDE!

Do it for the blessings you have received and the gifts you have to share! 

LIFE is PRECIOUS!

You only get each day ONE time!

Live each one of them with gratitude in your heart! How we spend our days is how we spend our lives!

“This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” – Psalm 118:24

So what are some of YOUR thoughts on GRATITUDE?

Share your comments.

I’m interested in CONNECTING!

 

Want to read my previous piece on gratitude, click on the image ABOVE!

To get on the email list, please share your information BELOW! I’m ALWAYS looking to connect with people interested in finding HOPE in all areas of life, including gratitude!

As always…

Go in love,

2 Comments

  • Kelly Purcell

    ❤️ Gratitude is one of my favorite subjects to talk about!! Several years ago I read Ann Voskamp’s book “1000 Gifts”. So good and it changed my morning routine. I now write in a Gratitude Journal each morning. I write down 3 things that I am grateful for, usually from the day before. This sets my mind off right for the day and by the end of the year I have over 1000 things I have been grateful for. I’m going on my 5th year now and I keep all my journals. It is so much fun to look back on them and appreciate all the little things that brought me so much joy in my life. Highly recommend!!!! 🥰🥰🥰

    • Hope Elizabeth Dutton

      Absolutely! I never read that book, I should as I’m sure I would enjoy it! It has seemed a natural leap to me as I’ve gotten older, so I started making my own lists! They go hand in hand with my meditative beach moments watching the sunrise! I think in a way, that is partly what this blog is for too! It’s an inspiring way for me to share my thoughts on so many motivational, upbeat aspects of life! A place to find Hope everyday!!! 🌱❤️⚓️

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