Living in appreciation

I sat down before bed the day after the elections to watch a YouTube video. An oatmeal ad came on. I cried with joy. It was so sweet in contrast to the barrage of hateful political ads that had reached fever-pitch before the election. I sat and watched every last drop of that oatmeal pouring into the bowl and appreciated it with all my heart. Another ad followed. This one depicted two little girls competing for business with their hot cocoa stands. When the busier girl saw the other little one sadly standing without any customers, she felt compassion. n. She changed her booth to sell marshmallows, and the two joined in cooperation as friends. I got teary-eyed again. I loved the simple beauty of the message. We can get along. We can cooperate. Kids can figure it out. So can we.

I’ve been working non-stop to focus on the positive things in life as much as possible. This energy is so intense I often wake up in a pool of static. I get my vibration as high as possible before bed to avoid that. I am intentional as I go to sleep about tuning in only to vibrations of light and love. I take time when I awaken in the morning to focus with appreciation on the day ahead.

Whenever I feel slightly off, I remind myself to appreciate someone or something around me. A dear one is having physical challenges, so I focus on the fact that they are alive and growing. A glass jar breaks all over the kitchen floor. I focus on how long it has lived and how many delicious foods it has stored. I appreciate my vacuum and the house I am blessed to clean. I appreciate the smell of freshly mowed grass, my clients’ unfailing desire to grow into more extraordinary love, and the millions of amazing people researching new cures, new ways to pull CO2 out of the air, and new ways to clean up the oceans. I appreciate the snows up north already working to refill our watersheds.

I don’t care for a lot of the hatefulness in our political arena on either side. Still, I appreciate that most people – no matter how they feel they need to get it –  want greater harmony, peace, balance, abundance, freedom, and love. I can appreciate our shared human desires. If I take time, I can even appreciate the chaos, knowing that out of this crucible of human emotions, we are polishing the diamonds of our hearts.

It takes work some days. People sometimes need to yell and vent their frustrations. There’s a lot of hurt and hate “out there,” but I can’t control “out there.” I can only control what is “in here,” and in here, it can be peaceful. In here, I can pause and look at all the good. In here, I can remind myself that God is God and God is Love and love is always there to be felt and experienced. In here I can focus on love and feel heaven even if some in the world are inadvertently sharing their own hell. In here, the Source of all creation lives patiently waiting for me to align with that love.

The other day I had a to-do list a mile long, a family member going through medical issues, I had Thanksgiving dinner prep in the works, and a client schedule in which I had booked overtime the following day. If I had thought about it, I would have been overwhelmed. Instead, I sat in bed and appreciated my fuzzy fleece, soft pillows, and peaceful space. I appreciated my angels. It dawned on me that a hug from Archangel Michael would feel amazing. I know the angels’ love is always there, just waiting for us to tune in. So I imagined his energy embracing me. For me, imagination is the easiest way to find a frequency. Sure enough, I felt the exquisite tenderness and heat associated with his vibration. His love and warmth wrapped around me like a fuzzy cocoon. It stayed with me as long as I focused on his vibration with appreciation. I got distracted for a moment by the fact that I hadn’t set my alarm. I knew his love was still there. I had just tuned away from it temporarily. I tuned back in and drifted into a glorious sleep.

I think appreciation is such an exquisite vibration because the Divine appreciates every moment we experience through our eyes and senses.As we tune into that vibration, we feel good, and we feel God. I learned long ago that I don’t need to wait for life to look “right” to get myself into a vibration of appreciation. I don’t need to wait for people to act the way I want. I don’t need the big things to be solved. I can stop right here and now, and appreciate that I’m writing this newsletter on Sunday night, connecting with all of you on the following Saturday in this beautiful web of interconnected lights that we are. My heart is full just thinking of it.

You are not alone in a crazy world with your loving perspective. Together, right here, right now, beyond space and time, I love and appreciate all of you.

Here are a few tips to help you find and focus on the vibration of appreciation…

1. Practice bursts of appreciation

It is fun to challenge yourself to see how many things you can appreciate in a short time. For example, challenge yourself to see how many people or things you can appreciate right now.

Set appreciation reminders on your phone and when they buzz, take 30 seconds to think of as many things or beings as you can to appreciate.

Spend a minute before bed thinking of how many things you can appreciate about your bed, your life, or your day.

These little bursts of appreciation are building the muscle it takes to focus on the vibration of appreciation when it’s easy, so you’ll feel better more often and have that skill available when things aren’t so easy.

2. Flip unpleasant feelings with appreciation

When something happens that you find upsetting, frustrating, sad, or unpleasant in any way, pause and think of ten things to appreciate, no matter how unrelated or unimportant they seem. It will help shift your energy, make you feel better, attract better, and even be more open to the guidance that can help you.

I’ll never forget a time when I received a very nasty email. It was so unthinkable and false that I unconsciously got up and started pacing, trying to wrap my mind around how to handle it. I ended up unconsciously washing my hands. I stopped mid-stream and, without thinking, appreciated the cool water washing over my hands and the smell of the soap. I looked around and realized how much I loved my bathrooms which I’d remodeled only a few years back. Humorously I thought to myself, “How funny I ended up in this room after someone heap a pile o’ you know what on me!” And then I started laughing and appreciated my ability to laugh. Soon, I was feeling much better without thinking about how to unwind from the attack. I had a new perspective. I knew how to respond kindly.

Appreciating even the unrelated mundane things in life can often lift you out of the muck and back into communion with the Divine, where love is present, guidance is available, and a kinder perspective can more easily be found.

3. Take time to appreciate yourself

It seems easier for many to appreciate life, their homes, and others than themselves, but you count too! In God’s eyes, you’re perfect even as you expand into more. If you are willing, you can always find things to appreciate about yourself, even when you don’t feel so perfect.

Maybe you don’t like your body, but you can appreciate how it carries your soul. One woman I know began to appreciate the hips she had hated because they had allowed her to carry her children. She lost five pounds the following week, all due to appreciation. There were no other changes.

Maybe you feel you could have handled a conversation or relationship better. You can appreciate the fact that you are aware of this. You are conscious. You’ve grown.

Maybe you aren’t where you want to be in life. You can appreciate the fact that you care about bettering yourself and your situation, that you’re not just “rolling over and giving up,” or if you feel you are giving up, you can appreciate the fact that you’re honoring your feelings in the moment.

It can seem like a stretch at times but finding things to appreciate about yourself is a powerful shift that can change your whole life and what you allow yourself to experience.

I wish all of you who celebrate it a beautiful Thanksgiving. May we all continue to appreciate and give thanks for what is good, beautiful, true, and expanding into greater love. I give thanks for all of you and your beautiful commitment to the light.