Tag Archives: spirit

Living Life with Gratitude

Do you live each day of your life fully? We know we are mortal and life will sometime end, but we still tend to live as though we’ve been given an endless supply of days. The seconds, minutes, and hours tick away relentlessly. Tick-tock, tick-tock.

Each day is a gift, and the present moment is the only certain one. There is beauty and sacredness to be found in every single day, when we choose to live that way. It’s the small things all around us all the time that give life its true magic.

Intentionally taking notice of life’s beauty makes life feel infinitely richer, and when we express gratitude for it, we also amplify our abundance. That which we focus on expands, so more comes back to us in an upward positive energy spiral of our own making.

Never underestimate the power of gratitude! It is an attitude that shifts everything in its path. Life immediately becomes bigger and full of possibility with gratitude.

If you are not already doing so, there is no time like today to begin fully immersing yourself in life! Don’t miss out on anything that you could enjoy, embrace, love, or learn, every single day from now on. Wring every beautiful moment out of life that you can, because it will fly by faster than you might ever imagine.

You may well ask, “How exactly does this help the world?” People can feel your happiness and the fulfillment of your soul. You will be a conduit of positive energy and inspire others, therefore helping to uplift humanity and create a better world.

This post is an excerpt from Becoming Bigger: In a world that wants to keep you small. It is free to read online or download at this link.

Inspirational Gratitude Quotes:

“Being grateful does not mean that everything is necessarily good. It just means that you can accept it as a gift.” ~ Roy T. Bennett

“Cultivate the habit of being grateful for every good thing that comes to you, and to give thanks continuously. And because all things have contributed to your advancement, you should include all things in your gratitude.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Acknowledging the good that you already have in your life is the foundation for all abundance.” ~ Eckhart Tolle

“I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought; and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.” ~ G.K. Chesterton

“When we give cheerfully and accept gratefully, everyone is blessed.” ~ Maya Angelou

“Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others.” ~ Marcus Tullius Cicero

And to finish, I send a wish of Happy Thanksgiving to American readers celebrating your big day of gratitude today!

Wholly

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Living life wholly, fully, completely,
is a process of learning,
with full awareness
and reverently,
for life IS holy –
I don’t mean religiously,
but yes, spiritually,
and respectfully
of All of Life,
not sacrificially
of yourself,
your own soul,
your learning,
but cooperatively
with humanity,
compassionately,
understandingly,
gracefully,
lovingly,
becoming
wholly
One.

Wholly poems is from Soul Journey: The Poetry of Life. © Susan L Hart

The Beauty of Our Souls

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Sometimes we forget to look for the deeper beauty in life. Beauty is easy to see on the face of a young person, fresh-faced and attractive by the definition of the particular culture in which they live. And admittedly, we all love to gaze upon a beautiful face. Beauty gives us pleasure.

But when physical beauty fades around the edges, then we have no choice but to look deeper. And there comes a point in our own evolution when we realize: The full, deep beauty of a person lies in their heart. Ironically, it is in this realization that our own souls grow to another level of beauty. We start seeing and connecting to people in a different way. We start living from the heart.

Some inner wisdom, expressed by the model and actress Audrey Hepburn, who was revered in her time for her exquisite physical beauty:

“The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman is seen in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides. True beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It’s the caring that she lovingly gives, the passion that she shows & the beauty of a woman only grows with passing years.”

Later in life, Audrey worked hands on in some of the poorest communities in Africa, South America, and Asia, to help alleviate poverty and be an example of what the Greeks call “agape”, or love for humanity. She became an icon for beauty yet again, but this time for a different kind, that of her heart.

Yes, (no matter our gender): The wisdom accumulated from our many life lessons, the shine in our eyes, our caring and compassion for our fellow human, our enthusiasm and gratitude for life itself, and a deep desire to keep living it with the full on curiosity and passion of a child – these are what grow us into the fullness of the inherent beauty of our souls.

© Susan L Hart 2024

Eternal Rhythm

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Eternal Rhythm

The golden leaves fall,
fearing not the decay of
a coming winter.

Death is essential
to the renewal of life –
All will spring again.

If each in nature
can feel this simple rhythm,
so can humans too.

Why do we resist?
Our fears overshadow the
truth of our being.

But the fall leaves know,
they show us that we too will
green the tree anew.

Eternal Rhythm is from Soul Journey: The Poetry of Life. This post is a nod to All Souls’ Day (also known as The Day of the Dead), celebrated by many this weekend. They say the veil is very thin on Hallowe’en. Certainly I have had my own personal undeniable encounters with spirits who still linger.

Remember the ones you love, yes, but resist becoming trapped by the sorrow of their leaving. Celebrate life, always.

Lighting the Darkness

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Out of the profound sadness that haunted much of Vincent Van Gogh’s life emerged one of the most famous paintings of the world, “The Starry Night” (1889).

Vincent was one of those souls who lived a life that in the fullness of time proved to be famously inspiring to others. While he was alive, his most fervent wish for his art was that it would help people “to see”. During his own personal journey of darkness he created works that would help to light the world.

Not everyone will paint a world-famous picture or write a widely read novel that inspires others. However, each one of us CAN be a light in the world.

Please, endeavor today to do one small random act of kindness for another human being. Be the light, and watch it ripple outward.

Inspirational Quotes:

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.” ~ Martin Luther King Jr.

“When it is dark enough, you can see the stars.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

“A book, too, can be a star, a living fire to lighten the darkness, leading out into the expanding universe.” ~ Madeleine L’Engle

“A painter should begin every canvas with a wash of black, because all things in nature are dark except where exposed by the light.” ~ Leonardo da Vinci

“All the darkness in the world cannot extinguish the light of a single candle.” ~ St. Francis Of Assisi

“Learn to light a candle in the darkest moments of someone’s life. Be the light that helps others see; it is what gives life its deepest significance.” ~ Roy T. Bennett

“We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.” ~ Plato