Focus On Gratitude

by Judy

"Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it. "

-William Arthur Ward-

The unofficial start of summer is upon us, and with it I am beginning my "100 Days of Summer" photography project.  As I did last year, from Memorial Day to Labor Day I will try to capture all of my summer moments - big and small.  This year, however,  I'm adding to my project.  Within the moments that I capture each day, at least one of my daily photographs will be of something that I am grateful for that day.  

We talk a lot about gratitude here. We even have our own Focus On Gratitude segments where at any time, whenever we wish, we can post about something we are grateful for, or talk about how we are striving to bring more gratitude into our lives.  So here I am today...

I practice gratitude every day, through prayer and journaling.  My hope is that by adding gratitude to my photography project, it will bring a deeper meaning to my photographs. My goal is to convey my feelings of gratitude in my photos. This may be easier said than done.  I am reminded of people who visit the Grand Canyon, or some other phenomenal place on earth, who say "the photos don't do it justice.  You have to be there."  But I will try.

Photography, and the practice (or discipline) of gratitude, keeps me in the moment.  Keeping my heart and mind open to the little miracles all around me, and acknowledging my gratitude for these miracles, makes me feel happy.  

So I ask you...what are you grateful for today? This week?  Did many things come to mind immediately, or did you have to pause and think?  I'd love it if you'd share with us the first thing that popped into your mind! (for me, the first thing that came to mind was that I am grateful for my sore muscles because it's proof that I had a productive weekend in my lawn and garden. And then, of course, that makes me grateful that I am physically able to work all weekend in my lawn and garden. It goes on and on.)

 It doesn't always have to be the big things in life that we are grateful for- they are so, so important, and I'm always thankful for them, but they're almost a given.  We can concentrate on the little parts of our day too and acknowledge all of the simple beauties of life, big and small.

I encourage you to focus on all the things in your life that you are grateful for. Every day. Think of them, acknowledge them, maybe even photograph them.  Let gratitude guide you through your day. 

"If the only prayer you said was thank you, that would be enough." 

-Meister Eckhart-

Focus on Gratitude

by Dotti

Gratitude bestows reverence, allowing us to encounter everyday epiphanies, those transcendent moments of awe that change forever how we experience life and the world. —Sarah Ban Breathnach in Simple Abundance: A Day Book of Comfort and Joy

During a town hall in New Hampshire last week, a candidate for president was asked a very thought provoking question and in her response, she shared that to maintain equilibrium in her life, she practices the “discipline of gratitude”.

Wow. Think about that – the discipline of gratitude. Actually, I have been thinking about it, a lot, since I read that phrase. We write frequently here about the practice of gratitude. And this is nothing new for me. As a small child, my father used to often remind me to “be grateful for small blessings.” Of course, I didn’t understand the wisdom of that lesson for many years to come.

But now I get it. So I strive each day to practice gratitude. At the conclusion of my day, I list at least five things I am particularly grateful for that day. By intent, they are usually small things that would otherwise go unnoticed and I try hard not to be trivial and trite about it. But – the discipline of gratitude introduces a whole new dimension. Forgive me, Emeril, but it kicks it up a notch. So I have a couple of challenges for you.

Knowing I needed a better understanding of this concept, I googled it. Well! Imagine my surprise when I turned up a veritable treasure trove of articles about this topic. Some were spiritual, some were less so, but all were relevant and very thought provoking. So, go ahead, Google discipline of gratitude if you wish, and read for yourselves what it’s about.

We all know that there is beauty and goodness all around us. As photographers, we are more attuned to noticing this than many who are not photographers so we may come to the practice of gratitude naturally. And how did we begin? By noticing the small wonders everywhere to be found so we could shoot pictures. Through this very act, we make ourselves present, right here, right now. (Being present. Where have we heard that before?) We practice gratitude.

Does it seem to you that the words "thank you" are becoming less common in our daily life? Although I do believe those in our FOL community are prolific with our “thank you’s”, I’m sure we’re still guilty of forgetting to thank our spouse/partner/friend/child when they do something unexpected for us, particularly if it’s a small thing. First challenge: find unusual opportunities today to say “thank you” – to the mailman, the checkout clerk, your family and friends, particularly when they do some small, almost unnoticeable act of kindness. This is a good step to practicing not just gratitude but the discipline of gratitude. It will also help us pay attention, to be present.

Why not just the practice of gratitude? Why is the discipline of gratitude necessary? Discipline implies daily practice. On good days, when it’s sunny, when all is right in our world, it’s easy to be grateful. But what happens when life’s storm clouds gather, as they will? If our practice of gratitude is a casual thing, we may forget to find something to be grateful for. However, if we have disciplined ourselves to practice gratitude daily, we will find that we must continue this discipline, thereby finding comfort and strength in the dark days. In a sense, the discipline we’ve expended on our gratitude practice in the good times will help open our hearts to the goodness that still exists around us in the not-so-good times.

And, finally, others too numerous to cite, have found that those who practice the discipline of gratitude find more happiness and contentment in our lives. And this, after all, is what we all strive for. It helps us focus on the positive aspects of the modern, fast-paced world we live in, where so much seems to be distressing and negative.

As you finish reading this post, I’m going to pose a simple challenge for you. Close your eyes. Right now. And list five things you’re grateful for so far today. Say the list out loud, it will be more powerful. And then join with me to practice this discipline of gratitude every day.

Be intent upon the perfection of the present day. – William Law

And finally, an announcement: Tomorrow, Cathy Hubmann will join us as a colleague here at Focusing on Life. I think many of you know her through her own blog, Gramma’s Little Corner and as a frequent commenter here. She has been a faithful member of this community since Day 1 and we’re delighted to welcome her to our ranks. Please be sure to visit tomorrow and give her a warm FOL welcome.

Always be Grateful

by Terri

This Thanksgiving was the first in several years that my oldest son was home for the holiday.  He and his girlfriend have been living in Dallas and it never made sense for them to come home for Thanksgiving when they would be coming three weeks later for Christmas. But they moved back home a couple of months ago so we were all together for Thanksgiving and it was wonderful!  And I was so busy enjoying it (not to mention cooking, cooking, cooking) that I didn’t take one. single. photo.  You heard me right. Not one. Well, there was one.  Taken on my cell phone during an after dinner hike in the desert. 

 

My excuse is that I was so in the moment that picking up my camera never entered my mind. And I’m both happy and sad about that.  Happy that I was really able to focus on what was going on around me, the smiles on the faces of my family, the laughter and the fun.  We watched the National Dog Show and some old home movies (lots of laughter there!) And sad because I would have really liked to have had pictures of our day together. But unless you hire a professional photographer to come and record those moments, you will either be more focused on the picture taking trying capture them yourself or you will miss having the photos. I think I'd rather be focused on the moment. We'll have other photos but we will never have this moment again. "That it will never come again is what makes life so sweet." ~Emily Dickenson

But I am so grateful for the wonderful holiday we had, whether it is recorded in photos or not. So very grateful. I hope yours was wonderful as well and maybe you even managed to grab some photos while you were at it. I hope you did but more than that I hope you were able to be in the moment and enjoy it all.

Let’s don’t stop focusing on gratitude. In the coming month, there will be so many things, large and small, to be grateful for. Even if it’s just a sunny day or a call from a friend. My hope is that practicing gratitude during the month of November will become a habit that will last all year. Our December Monthly Focus here at FOL is “Celebrate the Moment”. That’s exactly what I plan to do!

Greatful for You

by Terri

First of all, with our focus being on "gratitude this month", I want to tell each and every one of you who contribute your beautiful images to our Flickr pool that we are so grateful for you. You are the  ones who willingly share your talents and you are who make our Flickr gallery so amazingly beautiful. 

I could not choose just one image this month, so here are just a few of the amazing images shared during our month of gratitude:

Top: Margie O'Hara, Nadeen Flynn 

Middle: Leanne S., Diane Shirley

Bottom: Lisa McCann, gina g10

And I could have gone on and on.  But I will just say again, thank you to all who contribute for sharing your art with us. I have loved seeing the things you are grateful for this month.


 

Focus On You

As November rolls on we continue with our focus on gratitude.  I couldn't resist sharing this adorable photo by PJ Scott.  You can see more of Pam's photos by visiting her flickr stream.  Keep uploading your photos to the Focusing on Life pool 

Focusing on Gratitude

by Terri

Can you believe it is already November? Where has this year gone? Every year seems to fly by faster than the last. As we do this time every year here at FOL, we are focusing on GRATITUDE. Did you know that studies have traced a range of impressive benefits to the simple act of writing down the things for which we’re grateful? Benefits including better sleep, fewer symptoms of illness, and more happiness among adults and kids alike? And taking photos of those things we are grateful for just increases those benefits!

This time of year, I am particularly grateful for where I live. It’s a place that is now coming alive again after the long, hot summer and a place where fall brings butterflies, flowers and magnificent sunsets.

 

Another thing I am so grateful for every day are the other women who contribute to this blog with me. Their beautiful photography, insightful writings and, most of all, their friendship have been such gifts over the past almost four years since this blog began. And every day when I hop on my computer to "visit" with them, I am grateful.

This coming week is our annual retreat and this year the ones who can be here are coming to Phoenix. I can't wait to share my world with all of them!  And who knows, some of the photos they might post later this month will be from our time together.  I know we will all be grateful for it.

So I hope you will come along on this gratitude journey with us this month. Think about what you are grateful for and take a photo to represent that gratitude. Then post them in our Flickr pool or post them to IG with the tags #gratitude and #focusingonlife.  We can’t wait to see what you are grateful for but most of all, even if you don’t post, we hope you are focusing on gratitude this month. Regardless of who we are or where we live, we have so much to be grateful for.