Gratitude A Bound

Beaver Lake

What is gratitude...
or the question could be asked, what shouldn't I be grateful for? There is so much around me to be grateful for. The sun rising and setting another day, a "Harry Potter" marathon, Paddle Boarding on this beautiful lake to the left here. The food I eat and the roof over my head...the clothes on my back. This and so much more. But what is real gratitude? I mean real from the heart kind of gratitude? This whole month in the circles I run is known as gratitude month. I am not even sure where the origin of this came from. I know in the rooms of 12 step programs you hear about gratitude. Gratitude for a life living clean and sober. But my gratitude run far deeper than that.  It's a the kind of gratitude when you realize that happiness is your birthright. Hidayat Inayat Khan explains; "Happiness, which is a birthright,although we are not always conscious of that privilege, is only there to the extent that one becomes a source of happiness for others. We find it through trying to appreciate the good in others, and in overlooking that which disturbs us when not in accord with our own thinking; through trying to see the points of others, even though these might be contrary to one's own; and through trying to attune oneself to the rhythm of all those one meets, and in whose presence there might be a lesson to learn"

So as I sit in my meditation, I often try to bring the breath back to a state of higher consciousness. How do I know that happiness is my birthright? When do I know I am in that state of happiness, or bliss or true self? It is so hard to determine at times. But I know when I am quiet and still and can turn away from thought, I find those moment's deep in the void. And when I am in a true state of happiness, I am sharing that with others. When my heart is full of joy and gratitude, do I feel the oneness with my higher self. When I am spreading the spirit of warmth and laughter, do I feel close to bliss. When I invite others to share in my (our) celebration of life am I close to God.
It is hard sometimes to think or to know that this is my destiny. So often I think my life is measured by the job I have, the girlfriend I share a bed with, or the friends I keep. The car I drive, the camera I have, or the words I write. So often I believe we fall short of the ideals of who we truly are. Spiritual beings having a human experience. At least that's what I believe...



"When the doors of the temple of the heart are open, humility awakens upon finding oneself face to face with the Living God Within"
~Hidayat Inayat Khan