The notion that one should give thanks on a daily basis is nothing new. All the major religions prescribe this as a daily ritual and it is ingrained into the English language in phrases such as 'count your blessings'. But when something becomes a ritual, it is easy to lose sight of why we are doing it. Also, many of us do not subscribe to any traditional religion, so why should we bother? Why give thanks and who do you give it to if you do not believe in a personal God?
Perhaps it is not so much about thanking anyone in particular, but about maintaining an attitude of gratitude about the countless wonderful blessings that surround us every day, but which we so often take for granted. Recent research by two psychology professors McCullough and Emmons revealed that only a small daily dose of gratitude can make people more alert, enthusiastic, determined, optimistic and energetic. Do you need any more reasons?
Happy Cow recently stumbled across a marvellous video on YouTube called The Gratitude Dance. You can read more about the creators of this video at The Gratidudes website. Happy Cow also recommends taking a look at the new Gratitude Log website. You can use this simple and free tool to encourage you to keep a daily online log of the wonderful things in your life that you might just have forgotten were so wonderful.
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