What are you putting on the table this year as you celebrate the holidays? Whatever it is, prepare it with gratitude. Eat it with gratitude. Digest it with gratitude. Giving thanks for your food is more than just saying an obligatory prayer. It is more than giving forth a blessing. Giving thanks in its truest sense is a way of living. Living in gratitude lays the foundation for truly getting the most nourishment out of your food and your life.
When it comes to food, what are you thankful for? Write down a list of at least three things you love about your food. Maybe you are happy you know how to cook. Perhaps you just discovered a local place where you can get a free-range turkey for Thanksgiving. Maybe your discerning palate appreciates eating slowly as you taste all the rich flavors of the season. Most of us do not take the time or even realize the importance of sending gratitude to ourselves. Therefore, for an even bigger challenge, write down a list of things you love about yourself as an eater. For example, you may be grateful that you stop eating when you are satisfied. Or perhaps you congratulate yourself for choosing healthful foods to put in your body. There is always something amazing to find within yourself to appreciate. Continue to add things to your lists of gratitude. When you appreciate your food and yourself as an eater, you will begin to appreciate other aspects of yourself and your life.
Try this simple exercise to cultivate your gratitude. Choose a meal for which you have plenty of time to eat in a relaxed fashion. Every time you take a bite, think of something for which you can give thanks as you chew. To inspire your attitude of gratitude, think about the person that grew your food. Imagine the hard work they put into cultivating the soil. If you are eating something out of a package, send thoughts of appreciation to the person who packaged the food. Other ideas are to thank your digestive system for working. Place your hand over the area where your stomach is (on the left under your bottom ribs) and send gratitude to your stomach for its role in digesting your food. Thank your jaw for working well so that you can chew your food.
Increase your feelings and thoughts of gratitude beyond your food. What is working well in your life? Give thanks for the little stuff! Begin to pay attention to the little things that are going well for you in your life and the little things will turn into bigger things. Finding joy in the small stuff keeps you focused on gratitude. Focusing on joy and gratitude enables the manifestation of a life you are excited to live! Write your gratitude. As you discover all the little things for which you are grateful, write them down to cement them in your heart.
As always, when you are eating healthy foods in a peaceful manner, you will gain clarity… clarity about what you have in your life for which to give thanks and clarity about your life in general. The cleaner your foods (organic and full of nutrients), the better your body and mind will work. Your emotions will be more balanced. If your body does not have process toxins in the form of pesticides and chemical fertilizers, it will be free to create health rather than recovering from a stress response caused by toxins. The concept is simple. Living it by incorporating pure foods is your mission as you are creating a life full of gratitude.
Here is a quick review for cultivating gratitude in your life.
- Give thanks for your food.
- Write down a list of what you are grateful for about your food.
- Write down what you are grateful for in yourself as an eater.
- Give thanks with each bite.
- Send gratitude to your body for digesting your food.
- Send gratitude to the person who prepared/packaged your food. (It is ok to send it to yourself!)
- Pay attention to the little things that are working well and write them down.
- Incorporate more pure, clean foods into your lifestyle.
- Enjoy the process and thank yourself for creating a life full of gratitude!
You are worthy of having a heart full of thanksgiving and joy. Cultivate gratitude every day in the ways that make sense to you and marvel at the beautiful person that is you!
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