Grateful heart

Get present to (meaning: get still with) gratitude. Get present to all that you are grateful for.

Close your eyes and breathe for a moment (always a good place to start) and really think about how amazing it is that you have the body you have, with the cells whizzing about and all, and that you had access to clean drinking water today, and that there's food in your belly.

This isn't a guilt thing--don't let the distractions pull you there--this is a “Wow, it's pretty neat-o to be alive” thing.

Can you imagine--all the things that had to come together at exactly the right moment, all the series of events and circumstances, that had to fall into line for you to be the very person that you are, right here, today?

What are you grateful for?

My friend Yvonne sometimes says, "Don't move, until you're moved." Meaning: don't move until you sink so deeply into your gratitude that it warms your heart.

Sometimes people ask: What's the point of a meditation practice? A stillness practice? Awareness practice?

You can distill it down a few different ways, but in essence I think all of the practices are about connecting to yourself.

They're not about finding some ultimate truth (if that even exists) or being completely objective (impossible, anyway) or seeing things clearly (you'll never see anything clearly except your truth).

There's more than one way to get connected to yourself, and getting still and present with gratitude is among the most beautiful.

What are you grateful for?