At the end of a recent workshop I gave on gratitude we went around the room and people shared the gratitude practices that they want to implement. Several participants thanked me and I offered my thanks to them. As the event came to a close, I recognised that I had not publicly thanked the organiser, whom I will call Maria, who was also present at the time. I felt awkward in coming back to gratitude as we had already rounded things up. The irony of this was that we had just spent a whole two days exploring the role of […]

Many of my workshop or research participants ask me about how appropriate it is to feel grateful in the midst of the negativity of others, and in particular, when being bullied. Surely, they say, this would be putting a positive veneer on a negative situation – almost like adopting a Pollyanna attitude, pretending that things are all okay and letting our positivity mask situations that are crying out for attention. Just a few nights ago a woman whom I will call Natalie confronted me with the question: Are we meant to feel grateful to a person who’s injuring us? She […]

Every day we witness the brutality of war and atrocity, and can feel hopeless or doubt that anything we do as an individual can have a positive impact. International Day of World Peace was celebrated last week so now might be a good time to reflect on how our own gratitude can make a difference. I love the Zen saying: If there is light in the soul, There is beauty in the person, If there is beauty in the person, There will be harmony in the house, If there is harmony in the house, There will be order in the […]

Many of us live in a state of anxiety as we try to manage the constant flow of demands and distractions that characterise our fast-paced world. Sometimes I can hardly breathe I feel so overwhelmed by what’s ahead of me in my day and wonder how I am ever going to tick off the ever-growing list of tasks. However, I am noticing more and more how much a greater attention to gratitude can alleviate stress and give one a sense of joy in the midst of busyness. As I explored in my previous blog, A State of Preparedness: Preparing our […]