Excerpt from Daily Cures, Wisdom for Healthy Aging by Connie Mason Michaelis
Billy Cox, a Motivational Speaker, says, “Ships don’t sink because of the water around them; ships sink because of the water that gets in them. Don’t let what’s happening around you get inside you and weigh you down.” Isn’t it true that most of the burdens that we carry as our own, don’t really belong to us? Do you remember the Serenity Prayer, authored by the American theologian Reinhold Niebuhr, that says, “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.” Knowing the difference is the key. We take on the burden of the national news, the struggle of a friend or neighbor, worries about the weather. That cargo is dangerous to our wellbeing when we take it on as our own.
One of the best diversions to this negative thought life is to focus on the blessings of every day. If we spend more time cataloging our blessings and basking in the pleasure of them, we float in the energy of joy. It is a habit that can be practiced. I meet many Elders who have honed this skill throughout their lives. They radiate an enviable peace, and when asked, they almost always say, “I’m so blessed. I’ve lived a wonderful life!” No one avoids challenges in life; at the same time, everyone has blessings to hold close. Let’s float on gratitude!
“The discipline of gratitude is the explicit effort to acknowledge that all I am and have is given to me as a gift of love, a gift to be celebrated with joy.”
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