On the other hand, heartfelt emotions such as appreciation produce harmonious heart rhythms that are considered to be indicators of cardiovascular efficiency and nervous system balance. When people consciously experience appreciation and gratitude, they can restore the natural rhythms of their heart.”
The following are some tips for cultivating gratitude, not only on Thanksgiving Day, but all year-round.
Allow gratitude its moment Practice introspection Take a hiatus from negative news Celebrate your life
Here are just some of the ways practicing gratitude can improve your outlook on life.
Your overall well-being may increase by becoming aware of what we have to be thankful for.
A more grateful heart is indeed a more healthy heart.
You may live longer. Those who felt more optimistic about life lived an average of five years longer than their pessimistic counterparts.
Start your day with gratitude – another sunrise!
Stay in the present moment – learn from the past and plan the best you can for the future. Express your gratitude.
Create Thanksgiving Memories
A twist on the usual sharing what you are grateful for…. ask your guests to share their best Thanksgiving memories and family stories.
Thankful Basket After your guests have all arrived and settled in, have someone pass around pens and paper and a basket or bowl. Ask everyone to write down something they are grateful for, and add it to the basket. Later in the evening, pass the basket around and have people randomly choose a paper to read out loud. It is always more fun to read someone else’s than your own.
Gratitude Circle
Instead of having one person say grace or a blessing on the food while seated at the dinner table, have everyone stand in a circle and hold hands while prayer is said. You will be surprised how this one small change can increase your attitude of gratitude and bring people closer together.
Have A Conversation Put away the electronic devices, turn off the TV, and engage people in heartfelt
54 TEXAS LONGHORN JOURNAL i NOVEMBER 2017
conversation. Connect with people face- to-face and heart-to-heart and fill up on fellowship instead of only food.
Embrace The Day On Thanksgiving Day, do not miss an opportunity to cuddle up to your kids, parents, in-laws and friends or give complements to your guests. Everybody, from a baby to an old person, loves and needs to be hugged. Hugging is a great way to express affection, respect, AND gratitude.
Thanksgiving Gift Baskets
2 cups Bugles brand corn snacks Shaped like cornucopia or Horn of Plenty, a symbol of our nation’s abundance. 2 cups small pretzels Arms folded in prayer – a freedom sought by those who founded our country. 1 cup candy corn Sacrifices of the Pilgrims’ first winter, settlers survived on a few kernels of corn a day. 1 cup dried fruit bits or raisins Harvest gifts of our bountiful land. 1 cup peanuts or sunflower seeds Promise of a future harvest, reaped only if seeds are tended with diligence.
1 cup M&Ms-brand chocolate candy “M” for memories of those who came before us to guide us to a blessed future. 16 Hershey’s-brand chocolate kisses The love of family and friends who sweeten our lives.
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