A season of thanksgiving

While this year I have felt particularly blessed there have been times in my life when gratitude and feelings of Thanksgiving have been harder to come by. When life is going well it is easy to feel grateful, but when life throws you a couple curveballs that is when your true test sets in. During a particularly hard time in my life when nothing seemed to be going right I started to feel a bit hopeless. One day I got the idea to document five things which were going right in my life; some were big things like having a healthy body and a strong faith in God, but equally important were the small things.  Over the next couple of months I continually read through the list and clung to these things which were going right. 

Other things I have found make a difference:

• Exercise. Making it a priority to exercise each day makes my body and mind feel better regardless of my circumstances. 
• Journaling. By keeping a journal it allows me to more easily reflect on the period of growth both during and after my trials. 
• Service. Doing something for others. When all else fails turn your time and attention away from yourself. 
• Perspective. Maintaining a list of things which make me happy allows me to see the light in the darkest days. 

How about you, when the going gets tough how do you maintain a positive perspective and feelings of gratitude for your life?