An Attitude of Gratitude

Ah, Springtime! The prefect time to do a post that's a little more optimist, a little less optometrist...

So I wanted to do a quick post about gratitude. I am reading a book about the importance of being thankful and the great things that happen when you are appreciative. The book is called Living Life as a Thank You, and I found it to be an easy, inspirational read.

When you appreciate the good things in your life, you will bring more good things into your life. This reminds me a bit of the Law of Attraction. Whatever thoughts you have will expand to become the reality of your life, so thinking negative thoughts will only bring negative things to your life. Thinking positive thoughts and being grateful will bring you good things.

One of the practices I found interesting was the idea of a gratitude journal. Every day, you're supposed to jot down a few things that you are thankful for. We tend to think about this stuff around Thanksgiving , but I think we could benefit from thinking about it daily. Gratitude for the great things in our life can lead to positive thoughts and then wonderful things.

There was a chapter in the book about loss and difficult times too. Sometimes we find it hard to be grateful when we are hurting. The author took a "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger" attitude to loss, and reminds us that we need to be grateful for the good things that a loss has brought us.

I'm also reading (this one is an audiobook... still driving a lot) a book about living in a complaint-free world. Perhaps you have heard about the challenge to not complain for 21 days straight (the guy that wrote this book did a show on Oprah)... The people that set this up gave away purple bracelets that you switch to the other hand each time you complain. The goal is to not switch hands for 21 days. I haven't started it officially yet but am planning to. The idea here is that complaining is a negative thought, bringing more negative things into your life. You become what you complain about, and who wants that?

I think everyone can benefit from adopting a positive attitude. If you're not naturally a positive person, then you have the power to change that about yourself. I have personally found that focusing on gratitude and trying to see the bright side of things makes me a happier person. I think you will find the same is true.

Finally, I know this hasn't been too optometry-heavy, so just wanted to remind everyone to be thankful for their vision and good eye health. Hope everyone has a fantastic Easter weekend!