Affirmation: “I am empowered and thankful
for my parents’ love and support.”
Being grateful has a major impact on your quality of life. It lets you appreciate the goodness and forgive the strife. It lets you be free of your past burdens and soar in a life of your choosing. Owning your life and being grateful for the good is empowering. It implies that you aren’t a victim and that you have great power in your life. And it’s true. You have all the power in your life.
Gratitude, especially parental gratitude, is so empowering. So many of your traits were passed down from a parent, either by nature or nurture. Whether it’s your nose, your height, your temper, your disposition, your talents, or your drive, a parent or guardian likely shared it. You were shaped by the people who made you and who raised you, and for that you can choose to be grateful. For all the love they shared, you can feel thankful. Let go of everything else. Just keep the good.
Exercise: Letters to Your Parents
Now it’s time to write separate letters to each parent or guardian. Really take time and list out everything you are grateful for that came from them, be it the soccer practices, the moral support, organizing your kitchen, or loaning you money when you were down. Create these letters with love. Focus on the positive.
You can deliver the letter if the parent is alive and accessible. If the parent is deceased, then read it aloud and know their spirit will hear it. If you feel too shy to deliver it in person or aren’t able to, consider sending it by snail mail. The impact of the paper in hand will be more evocative.
Share your gratitude and draw more and more goodness to you. Many people have complicated feelings about their childhood and parents, biological or otherwise. That is okay. These feelings may come up. You can breathe through them and acknowledge the reality that no parent or guardian is perfect. There is no complete, fail-safe instruction manual for a parent to deal with the dark night of their soul or old wounds that motivate poor behavior. Try to find compassion for yourself and your parents and also feel your feelings completely. When you can, come back to find the blessings. You may have inherited a fabulous singing voice from an estranged parent or a drive to succeed from a less-than-perfect role model. Finding the gifts, whether obvious or not, will help you process your life more completely. This will foster integration, which leads to forgiveness, understanding, and true bliss.
You were born of two flawed yet beautiful souls.
Happiness is your birthright, and love is your guide.
#joyfulliving101