November's word of the month

Moving into the month of November brings a smile to my face.  It's always been a time of gathering with family and friends, enjoying great food together and celebrating the fall harvest. 

Here in the United States we honor the tradition of Thanksgiving - a time of giving thanks and being grateful for what we have.  And with Halloween signaling the beginning of the holiday season November is a time of shifting our focus to letting others know how much we appreciate them.

So the word of the month is... Appreciation - the recognition and enjoyment of the good qualities of someone or something.  When the world is zooming all around us life can become very stressful.  With our focus on the problems at hand it's easy to spiral into a very uncomfortable place. 

But if you can catch yourself in worry, fear, anger, desperation and find something good in your life to focus on you'll shift the energy and move into a more comfortable emotional space.  It doesn't have to be a big thing - just something you see as having good qualities.  The beautiful blue sky, puffy white clouds, food you're eating, a pet.

In Reiki tradition the first of five Principles is the Attitude of Gratitude:

Just for today I will live the attitude of gratitude. 
I give thanks for my many blessings.

You don't have to be attuned to Reiki energy to adopt this as a morning, noon and evening affirmation.  It's a wonderful reminder to shift our focus to something we can be thankful for, that we are grateful for, or that we can appreciate in our lives. 

I appreciate YOU!  Thank you for trusting me with your spiritual well-being.

Share your November stories of appreciation with us here or on Facebook. 

Be present in the moment and enjoy the month!