I don’t know about anyone else, but stress alarms start pinging in my brain and heart on the first of November. Oh I love this month so much, but the thought of all the things that will be packed into these next seven weeks takes my heartbeats up a few notches. So I have been thinking about one powerful antidote for stress: gratitude.
I figured I’d balance out the racing heart with the elixir of gratitude, and pull out our traditional thankful tree. I really do think gratitude is the antidote for stress on so many levels. Did you know gratitude has the power to create new pathways in the brain and to change the way we think?
And our thankful tree is filled up each year with the things we are grateful for, which lassos part of that gratitude power in our home.
It started like this:
And went to this (with Lucy’s help) pretty lickety-split:
I whipped up a tree to send to Claire and her district in the MTC while I was at it:
(Tried my hand at “grateful” in Chinese.)
I wish I had a picture of that missionary of mine all glowing with some of those awesome girls as we talked on Monday for P-Day. They were excited to show us that tree hanging in their room adorned with the gratitude leaves they’ve added together.
Yes, gratitude is powerful.
So *grateful* we have a month to focus on it to balance out all the holiday stress. May it change our hearts and those pathways in the brain in each of us this month.
I’ve been really thankful for the council we have been given lately on slowing down, simplifying, we don’t have to do it so. It reminded me of the talk Good, better, best. I’ve really been trying to slow down, and just focus on God, family, ministering.
I’ve loved this tradition of yours over the years, it’s so beautiful.
Your chinese characters look amazing! Excellent work!!!