Gratitude

April 25th, 2011, by Shelley Riutta

It is easy to be grateful for all of the wonderful blessings in our lives. What about the challenges and difficult times?  It is harder to move into a feeling of gratitude when things are hard.  How can I be grateful for this situation that is causing me pain or confusion?  I was on a coaching call the other night and one of my friends that was on the call said that he had a situation that blew up in his face—and this was from something he had initiated with good intentions.  I was surprised to hear him talk in a cheerful voice about how grateful he was for the situation because he was able to see a pattern that has happened over and over for him—and he was able to see his part in creating this.

Trusting that every situation has something good in it for you–despite appearances– is something that can be cultivated. I work with this concept a lot with clients.  Today I had a client who talked of sending a thank you note to her ex-boyfriend—who she was in one of the most challenging relationships of her life.  The relationship was a huge catalyst for making a breakthrough for her in self-love and standing up for herself. The important thing is that while she was in the relationship she shifted from a victim stance of “you are doing these hurtful things to me” to a more empowered stance of what do I need to do to take care of myself in this situation–what is loving for me.  She used the situation for her own growth and expansion—rather than falling victim to it and repeating an old hurtful pattern.

Think of a challenging situation that you are facing now.  How can you shift your stance from a victim (you are doing this to me) to a more empowered stance (how can I use this as a vehicle for my own growth and expansion).