Happy Thanksgiving! The Thanksgiving holiday has me thinking once again about the role that gratitude plays in our lives. This year especially its even more important to reflect on all of this. Couples who come to me for counseling are often missing this crucial piece of the puzzle in their relationship. Gratitude needs to play a significant role in your day to day interactions with your partner. Not only that, but in your entire attitude about life in general.
You see, without gratitude we risk becoming self-centered, entitled and shallow. We only see the superficial and the world that revolves around us. That’s a pretty small piece of the big wide world! We look for the advantages, the angles, and “what’s in it for me?” and risk becoming selfish and small-minded.
Gratitude expands our world view. It helps us see the bigger picture, the opportunities to be more kind and giving and puts us in touch with the emotions that make us better humans. Gratitude allows us to be happy right where we are in this moment, rather than a constant striving for some distant goal that may or may not ever be attainable and makes us feel unworthy.
Gratitude allows us to see the beautiful and wonderful things in life that having a partner, a spouse , a lover and a helpmate, brings to us. When you begin to appreciate having that person in your life that loves you and supports you, they begin to blossom. You give them a gift of seeing how great they really are simply by being in your life. This is specially true this Thanksgiving holiday.
I challenge you today to consider these things. Make gratitude for your partner, for you life and for your blessings a part of every day. The happiest people I know live with an “attitude of gratitude” all the time. This makes dealing with difficult problems and circumstances a whole lot easier. When we can find something to be grateful for, the bad times don’t seem so bad.
At the end of each day, turn to your partner (and you might want to journal this as well), and tell them three things you are grateful for that were a part of your day. I hope you always count your partner as one of the three. It is a tradition at many Thanksgiving gatherings to go around the room (or the table) and to state something you are thankful for. If you’re living in gratitude, it may be hard to choose just one! Happy Thanksgiving from The Couples Expert!
