The Art of Gratus – September Challenge

Gratus is the latin word for gratitude; pleasing, thankful. As September rolls around, my attention is drawn to the many blessings that are present in my life and makes me wonder… what are you grateful for?

To quote Robert Emmons, a world expert on gratitude, there are two components to gratitude:

1. It’s an affirmation of goodness. Affirming that there are good things in the world, gifts and benefits we’ve received
2. Recognizing that the sources of this goodness are outside of ourselves. Acknowledging that other people (or higher powers) gave us many gifts, big and small, to help us achieve the goodness in our lives

So in order to practice gratitude, we need to do these two things; affirm and acknowledge.

This past year I have come to affirm and acknowledge my own limitations and ultimately learn to surrender. I am not particularly good at this (yet!) but in the brief moments of surrender, I have found gratitude.

There are many reasons to be grateful – from the sheer luck of being born in Canada, a stable and peaceful country, to the amazing relationships I have found in my life, to the freedom to learn, grow and develop my skills and self in a supportive, non-judgmental environment. We are blessed.

This month, I encourage you to ‘practice at a different pace’ and find space in your life to find gratitude. It can be over a slow cup of coffee in the morning, perhaps a few words before a meal, maybe an extra five minutes in ‘savasana’ at your yoga class, or a note in your daily journal. Whichever method, take a week, month or maybe the rest of the year and make it a habit.

As a little incentive, we are offering the first 15 people who send us what they are grateful for, a FREE Sprout water bottle!

So take a minute to affirm and acknowledge the good things in your life then, let’s spread some gratitude this month.

With gratitude,

Dr Chanel Cressman, ND