I am continuing my post from last week on Oprah Winfrey’s book The Wisdom of Sundays section on Gratitude. There is so much wisdom in that section that I needed to split it up into two posts. For me, Gratitude (with a capital G) connects me with my true self, my inner spirit and to being in the present. As I have stated before being in gratitude automatically puts you in the present moment. And when I am in the present moment, miraculous feelings of love run through me and all around me. That is when I feel the strongest presence of God. The God in me and the God that runs through all things and created everything that is. It is like a you are receiving a big hug from God when gratitude lands you in the present moment. So let’s continue my book review.

Oprah’s interview with Shawn Achor was eye opening. In just two minutes each day, you can change your life. “If you wake up every morning and practice saying three things you are grateful for – they have to be new each day – by doing this for twenty-one days, even people who were testing as low-level pessimist on average were now testing low-level optimist.” The study included eighty-four year old men whose genes were pessimistic and found that their genes changed. So if they can change after decades of being pessimistic, then you can to. Shawn states “They’re actually the building blocks of how human being change.”

In Oprah’s interview with Tony Robbins he states “The first step I go into is appreciation. Anything. The wind. The look in your eye. Something I can appreciate. Because the minute you appreciate, you get out of your own self. You stop obsessing… Most of your suffering comes from expectation. Trade your expectation for appreciation.” He goes on to say “When life matches your blueprint, you’re happy. When life does not match your blueprint, you have pain… You blame. Blame doesn’t change anything… Do something. Or change your blueprint.” You can change your blueprint of your life. It takes work to change your mind but you can do it. Stop blaming yourself or others and choose new thoughts. Choose appreciation and gratitude.

Oprah’s interview with Lynne Twist was incredible. Lynne says “What do I want to celebrate today? Rather than waking up in the morning with’ I didn’t get enough sleep’, and going to bed with ‘I didn’t get enough done’, which is bookending your day with scarcity.” Instead she says what if we are grateful for only a few hours of sleep? And instead of looking at our to-do list at the end of the day as not completed, be thankful for what you did do. After all, how many of us get our to-do lists completed each day anyway?

Lynne says Brother David Steindl-Rast says “Gratefulness is the experience of the great fullness of life.” So experience your life with gratitude and you will feel loved, appreciated and abundant. Lynne says “You know, the word wealth, the etymology (study of words) of it is well-being…That’s true wealth.” Could not have said it better myself.

I love what Ram Dass said. “In the moment is where you see God – not in the past, not in the future. Past and the future are thoughts, just thoughts. It is just in this moment…is where God lives – beautiful.”

“This is the moment where God lives. Right here in the stillness, right there in the still.” – Oprah Winfrey