TODAY, MAY WHATEVER LOADS
you are carrying be lightened
and may your heart
be
buoyed
by
gratitude.
No doubt, your email and news feeds are more full than ever with messages about gratitude, as tomorrow is Thanksgiving in the United States. Whether you’re in the US or someplace else, being grateful most likely doesn’t come easy this year – it requires, I believe, a bit of graced and gritty ferocity, for life is uncomfortable and challenging for so many of us.
What I hear from friends around the world, from all walks of life and from many religious traditions, is that celebrations and holidays, along with much of life, is wildly different this year. Two weeks ago, Diwali – a festival of lights – was celebrated ’round the world by many Hindus, Jains, and Sikhs. Before that, many of our Jewish sisters and brothers were celebrating their treasured high holidays. And before that, many of our Muslim friends were celebrating Ramadan and Eid.
It seems that no matter where we live, we are bound together by many similar difficulties, restrictions, and hardships – and, I hope, by some gifts and goodness, too.
May our collective need to celebrate and navigate life in “wildly different” ways than ever before draw us together like never before. May we lean towards each other in new ways, with eyes of curiosity, kindness, and great love. And, may we practice looking for and finding little or big bits of beauty around us – being buoyed by gratitude for the goodness we discover.
Take a beat and a breath for a short and sweet Place of Pause (PoP) below to kindle your grateFULL vision today.
Place of Pause
Be still. Surrender.
I wonder,
what do you most need in your heart,
in your body, in your soul at this moment?
You don’t need to know what it is.
You may just feel an ache,
or be worn out,
or happily content to sit down for a moment.
If there are a flurry of thoughts, let them flurry off.
Bid them farewell for now. Here, you just get to be.
Be and breathe.
Stay here for a few moments longer.
For a longer and guided PoP on YouTube and to dive into this week’s PoP (our focus: “Surrounded by Sacred”), check out the video series (it’s free) of 10-minute PoPs.
I share these short and sweet PoPs so you can FILL UP with peace and navigate this wild and crazy season with strength and courage. There is much clamoring for our attention 24-7 with LOUD, FEAR-based, PANIC-inducing messages – but let’s practice peace, together, amidst these stormy days.
Before We Wrap Up …
CREATE | Make some Bags of Love … a celebratory and simple service opportunity. Carve out a morning or afternoon this week to assemble bags filled with nourishing food and other helpful items that you can share with those in need on your city’s streets. Be guided by this creative toolkit (downloadable PDF) on your own or with your family or friends. More info & to download the toolkit (it’s free).
SHOP | As the holidays are here, get your shopping done early and give the gift that keeps giving with a “Live Ablaze” 5-Book Bundle! Buy 5 and Save $10. Grab your autographed copies here. Free shipping & holiday delivery when ordered by December 7.
Have a most blessed and beautyFULL week to all – and to those in the US, may this wildly different holiday week be graced with gratitude.
You are loved.
You belong.
We belong to each other.
Let’s standTALL together and light up the world!
xo, -Sarah DT ❤️
