GRATITUDE

is not a passive response to something given to us, gratitude is being awake in the presence of everything that lives within and without us. Gratitude is not something that is shown after the event, it is the deep, a priori state of attention that shows we understand and are equal to the gifted nature of life. Gratitude is the understanding that many millions of things come together and live together and mesh together and breathe together in order for us to take even one more breath of air, that the underlying gift of life and incarnation as a living, participating human being is privilege, that we are part of something, rather than nothing. Even if that something is temporarily pain or despair, we inhabit a living world, with real faces, real voices, laughter, the color blue, the green of the fields, the freshness of a cold wind, or the tawny hue of a winter landscape. To see the full miraculous essentiality of the color blue is to be grateful with no necessity for a word of thanks. To see fully, the beauty of a daughter’s face is to be fully grateful without having to seek a God to thank him. To sit among friends and strangers, hearing many voices, strange opinions; to intuit inner lives beneath surface lives, to inhabit many worlds at once in this world, to be a someone amongst all other someones, and therefore to make a conversation without saying a word, is to deepen our sense of presence and therefore our natural sense of thankfulness that everything happens both with us and without us, that we are participants and witness all at once. Thankfulness finds its full measure in generosity of presence, both through participation and witness. We sit at the table part of every other person’s world while making our own world without will or effort, this is what is extraordinary and gifted, this is the essence of gratefulness, seeing to the heart of privilege. Thanksgiving happens when our sense of presence meets all other presences. Being unappreciative means we are simply not paying attention.

-David Whyte

Time again for gratitude

So many wise ones say you need gratitude to be happy.  I find it hard to be happy during the cold  lonely winters in Calgary.  So, again I come to gratitude:

~ My job stresses me out - I'm happy to have a job (although I know simply having a well-paying job is not everything
~ Most mornings I listen to the World BBC News and often cry

Take a deep breath.

Fill up with life,

and open

To the eternal.

the Connector.

the Sustainer.

the Creator.

Blessed Love -

filling you up,

and you are Light

as a feather,

and everything else

made up of Light.

Amazing Quotes on Gratitude

We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures.

~ Thornton Wilder

There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.

~ Albert Einstein

Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgivings, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings.

~ William Arthur Ward

As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.

~ John F. Kennedy

There is a calmness to a life lived in gratitude, a quiet joy.

~ Ralph H. Blum

The best way to pay for a lovely moment is to enjoy it.

~ Richard Bach

Let gratitude be the pillow upon which you kneel to say your nightly prayer. And let faith be the bridge you build to overcome evil and welcome good.

~ Maya Angelou, Celebrations: Rituals of Peace and Prayer

At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us.

~ Albert Schweitzer

Forget yesterday—it has already forgotten you. Don’t sweat tomorrow—you haven’t even met. Instead, open your eyes and your heart to a truly precious gift—today.

~ Steve Maraboli, Life, the Truth, and Being Free

Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh, Peace Is Every Step: The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life

Some people grumble that roses have thorns; I am grateful that thorns have roses.

~ Alphonse Karr

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

~ William Arthur Ward

If there ever comes a day when we can’t be together, keep me in your heart, I’ll stay there forever.

~ Winnie the Pooh

Dare to Be

When a new day begins, dare to smile gratefully.

When there is darkness, dare to be the first to shine a light.

When there is injustice, dare to be the first to condemn it.

When something seems difficult, dare to do it anyway.

When life seems to beat you down, dare to fight back.

When there seems to be no hope, dare to find some.

When you’re feeling tired, dare to keep going.

When times are tough, dare to be tougher.

When love hurts you, dare to love again.

When someone is hurting, dare to help them heal.

When another is lost, dare to help them find the way.

When a friend falls, dare to be the first to extend a hand.

When you cross paths with another, dare to make them smile.

When you feel great, dare to help someone else feel great too.

When the day has ended, dare to feel as you’ve done your best.

Dare to be the best you can—

At all times, Dare to be!

~ Steve Maraboli, Life, the Truth, and Being Free

The Heart of Gratitude. ~ Jamie Allison

The Heart of Gratitude. ~ Jamie Allison

The Poetry of Yoga team shares on this Thanksgiving week a poem (that doubles as a prayer) from the Volume 2 Book Anthology which releases on 12.12.12.  

The piece below, titled “The Heart of Gratitude,” was written by Jamie Allison and is published on pages 206 – 207 of the new book.

The Heart of Gratitude

OM, the Eternal One
Sweet Spirit
Ocean of Possibilities
Beginning-less
Endless River of Creative Power
Divine Mother
Womb of the Universe.

Paint my life with your sacred paintbrush.
Saturate me with the full spectrum of color
so that I may taste every aspect of you that is me.

Let inspiration flow through me
like the illuminative dawn spreading out across the sky
kissing all creation with your spark of love.

Golden Sunlight reflects off your infinite forms
of manifestation creating a mirror for your magnificence.

Eternity is offering herself as a secret waiting to be told,
a mystery waiting to unfold.

May I imbibe this wonder and drink
from this everlasting cup!

Evening bird song punctuates the quiet hush of twilight.
My heart longs to linger a little longer in

the sweetness of this departing day.

Hold me in the deep blue velvet of your starry night sky.
Bless me with peaceful sleep so that I may welcome a new
day and offer myself fully,
without hesitation to the wonder of this life.

7 Awesome Gratitude Quotes

By Jason Wachob

I think we'd all agree that expressing gratitude daily is something we can always improve upon. Here are seven of my favorite quotes on what many consider to be the secret to happiness, health, love, and success -- gratitude.



1. "Real life isn’t always going to be perfect or go our way, but the recurring acknowledgment of what is working in our lives can help us not only to survive but surmount our difficulties." -- Sarah Ban Breathnach



2. "Gratitude is when memory is stored in the heart and not in the mind." -- Lionel Hampton



3. "Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn't learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn't learn a little, at least we didn't get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn't die; so, let us all be thankful." -- Buddha



4. "Take full account of the excellencies which you possess, and in gratitude remember how you would hanker after them, if you had them not." -- Marcus Aurelius



5. "There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle." -- Albert Einstein



6. "Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity... It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow." -- Melody Beattie



7. "When you are grateful, fear disappears and abundance appears." -- Tony Robbins

Wintery February 10th - Keeping the Light Within

Vision without action is only a dream.

Action without vision just passes the time.
Vision with action will change your life.
~ Joel Barker
♥
If you follow your bliss, you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there all the while, waiting for you, and the life that you ought to be living is the one you are living. When you can see that, you begin to meet people who are in your field of bliss, and they open doors to you. I say, follow your bliss and don't be afraid, and doors will open where you didn't know they were going to be.
~ Joseph Campbell
♥
Affirm
To live and speak our truth. Becoming congruent with who we are, we shed that which is not authentic, true or in resonance with our being. We state our truth with words, deeds and our inner conversation that creates our reality. When we say "I am ..." we are speaking into being that reality. Death and Life are in the power of the tongue, Speak Life!!!!

Affirmation: I am well, I am full of life, i am full of love, i am full of joy, I am present here and now in this place, I am strong, I am wise, I am enjoying my life, I am creating my life in wonder, I am fully receiving every good thing, I am Loved! I Am.
~Keith Allen Kay
♥
Comparison is the thief of joy
T.Roosevelt.
♥
I feel blessed to teach yoga and to be a part of this amazing community of Anusara Yoga. We navigate our selfs through the philosophy and practice of our method to have more understanding, clarity and to be more human. Sensitive, compassionate, loving and always honoring the highest in our selfs and others. This community of loving Teachers and beautiful Students is what our teacher John Friend has trained and brought together to celebrate life, the universal and each others heart.

We are humans in all our steps. Let's face the challenges of being human with grace, truth and open heart.
Grateful for the teachings
Gratitude to my Teachers
Namaste - Konstantinos Charantiniotis
♥
Gratitude is the music of the heart, when its chords are swept by the breeze of kindness
♥
the gold in life is in the second chances
♥
No one else can hold your hand or take this voyage of the Soul for you, and yet ...at no time will you be alone, for you can never truly be alone.
~J M Harrison
♥
The night walked down the sky with the moon in her hand.
~ Frederick L. Knowles
♥
If you live the life you love, you will receive shelter and blessings. Sometimes the great famine of blessings in and around us derives from the fact that we are not living the life we love; rather, we are living the life that is expected of us. We have fallen out of rhythm with the secret signature and Light of our own nature.
~John O'Donohue
♥
When you practice forgiveness, and let go of the story - let it fall away - only then can pure emotion begin to transform into pure power within the crucible of the heart. This becomes Kirya Shakti usable to us as positive energy ~ a Gift of the Goddess! "... but even in the dark we orient toward the light. We hold to the highest." ~ Christoper Tompkins
♥

When I was 5 years old my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down: "Happy". They told me that I didn't understand the assignment, and I told them they didn't understand life.
~John Lennon
♥
Imperfection is beauty,

madness is genius
and it’s better to be
absolutely ridiculous
than absolutely boring.
~ Marilyn Monroe
♥

Health is derived from daily life... + Gratitude

Experience Embodiment
Feel pleasure
Occupy Creativity
... Enjoy Social Connection
Care for Another
Love Yourself Through Fantastic Nutrition
Fully explore Exertion
Fully explore Relaxation
Love and Receive Love

Every Day

Gratitude Unlocks the Fullness of Life

"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow."

~ Melody Beattie

Courage, Hope, Gratitude, Love

"In times of challenge, may we listen with courage and sing with hope. In times of ease, may we listen with gratitude and sing with love."

~ A blessing from Ross Rayburn, given at the end of his first public class at Bhavana Yoga Center in Athens, Greece


Gratitude is when memory is stored in the heart and not in the mind.

~ Lionel Hampton

Tony Robbins: You Control Your Future

"You are now at a crossroads. This is your opportunity to make the most important decision you will ever make. Forget your past. Who are you now? Who have you decided you really are now? Don't think about who you have been. Who are you now? Who have you decided to become? Make this decision consciously. Make it carefully. Make it powerfully."

~Tony Robbins


7 Awesome Gratitude Quotes
http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-2395/7-Awesome-Gratitude-Quotes.html
By Jason Wachob

I think we'd all agree that expressing gratitude daily is something we can always improve upon. Here are seven of my favorite quotes on what many consider to be the secret to happiness, health, love, and success -- gratitude.


1. "Real life isn’t always going to be perfect or go our way, but the recurring acknowledgment of what is working in our lives can help us not only to survive but surmount our difficulties." -- Sarah Ban Breathnach

2. "Gratitude is when memory is stored in the heart and not in the mind." -- Lionel Hampton

3. "Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn't learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn't learn a little, at least we didn't get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn't die; so, let us all be thankful." -- Buddha

4. "Take full account of the excellencies which you possess, and in gratitude remember how you would hanker after them, if you had them not." -- Marcus Aurelius

5. "There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle." -- Albert Einstein

6. "Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity... It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow." -- Melody Beattie

7. "When you are grateful, fear disappears and abundance appears." -- Tony Robbins

Gratitude

Wish I was here.....

Or riding my Cannondale road bike on this warm, smooth road,

with nearby hills to climb.....

Even though Calgary, should be called WinterCity, having only two seasons - Winter & construction or stampede season. I know how fortunate we are to live here. 

I am grateful:

• to breathe fresh air, even if it's cool & crisp most of the time
• to be close to the mountains for biking & to ski (when there's too much snow for biking)
• for my friends
• the amazing electronic bass music scene that has evolved over the years
• for the strong communities & kulas I'm part of
• for my career
• to have the honor to share my love of yoga with others
• to have ideas, followed by resourses & determination to make things happen  

With everything that's happening in the world I am reminded of how fortunate we are and how trivial daily complaints can be...in comparison to the global picture.  I try to help as much as I can, still there's feelings that its not enough....then I'm reminded and filled with gratitude...