Remembering the good things... Anniversaries for the soul

Good day Readers!! I hope all of you are doing well!!! Today's post is about a special date for me, October 29th, it is a date that resembles when my spiritual family was formed, a group of wonderful individuals who have stood as true friends by my side for over 3 years now, and I am incredibly grateful for them. This all got me thinking how many good things do we have in our lives that we don't give our full attention to due to being bogged down by life's stresses and routines?

Personally, I have always loved this group and the many friends I created, however, I realized I started treating them as part of a routine, "Oh, it's Thursday, I got to go to my group" I'd think to myself; "got to?" does that mean I no longer went because I wanted to? That my dear readers is an awful feeling to have when it comes to something or someone you love, when you feel you need to do it, over you wanting to do it.It is important to love the good things in your life, to be thankful and strive to grow in them, don't confuse this for turning your want into a reason to complain, as that is another thing people do a lot. "I love this or that, but I wish it had better hours/paid more/for it to be bigger/etc". The point I am trying to make is learn to have gratitude, as it is a key component to be happy in life, and in the end, isn't that what most of us really want, happiness?

Now you may say, I'm grateful enough about the people and things I have, that may be so, but if you still feel stressed or weighed down by it, it may be that you aren't expressing said gratitude, it may be suppressed, if that's the case, liberate yourself, share how you feel with others, write thank you letters for the little things, maybe make a gratitude wall where you add three things that you are grateful for each and every day; when we learn to count our blessings instead of what we have yet to accomplish I can guarantee you will feel your load lightened.

Now I know some of us might be a bit too bitter or cynical for such practices, they may say, "yeah I have this and that but I have so many more "bad" things I need to focus on," (Basically why can't you understand my life sucks or whatever...) If you are stuck in this self pity state where you feel with just a little more you could finally be happy, I suggest getting to know someone who DOESN'T have what you have, so that you can open your eyes to see how much you have truly taken for granted! For example, my group AKA spiritual family, these are people who look out for me, pray for me, watch my back, genuinely care about how I feel, and invite me to fun activities all the time; now think about someone who has no friends, or an anti social individual who rarely gets invited to places, or even a well timed hug from a loving friend... Still having a hard time understanding? Ok then let's take it down to a simpler example, smart phones, that little touch apparatus hanging out in your pocket with you, think about how often you use it and all the things you use it for, now talk to someone who doesn't have that, perhaps they have an old Nokia and no laptop, what's their life like? What difficulties or inconveniences could they be having?  think about how inconvenient life would be for you without that small device... Seriously, it is proven that connecting with people different from ourselves broadens our compassion, empathy, awareness and deepens our sense of community; Not only this however, we also get to know people who don't have the things we take for granted, giving us an even deeper appreciation for what we do have.


I certainly had to readjust my energy, and remember how incredibly blessed and grateful I am for this second family of mine...

A family who truly creates a love filled atmosphere

A family who helps you live a healthy life style

One with a true sense of unity...

...with a constantly growing community...

...of kindness and Godly fear..!!

Creating true friendships where we encourage each other at all times, not just Thursdays.

Now with that said I hope you have all those blessings in your life in your mind and heart instead of the hardships, feels good, yeah? So, what if I told you that there's a way to make it even better? That's right, a way to fill yourself with even more gratitude and happiness with what you got, and it's so simple, you get it by giving more of it to others. For example, this group, this family I have had the pleasure to be a part of isn't closed off, no, our doors are open and all are welcome, but not only that we give our time as a group to visit the elderly, feed the homeless, play with kids in need, collect food and money for the needy, dance with the neglected, and many more things all in God's name. Yes, for 3 years this family and my relationship with God have eliminated my depression, help me grow as a person, and have constantly reminded me that I am not alone and how easy it is to be happy, even in this harsh world that we live in.

Happy anniversary my dear Blessed Family, thanks for being there for me, even when I grow cold by this world's stress and burdensome grasp. 

Fun Fact: October 29th was also my 6 month anniversary with my lovely girlfriend whom I went to visit last month, so thank you as well Katie for your loving encouragement and heart warming positivity, I am beyond blessed to have you in my life.

Thank you for sticking by me Shrimpy♥

In the end, remember to count the good in your life instead of what you have lost or are still missing, remember to be grateful for all the things you have in your life as there are many who would kill for them, be willing to share the blessings that you have and increase your own joy as well as the joy of others, don't take them for granted, lest someone else come up and take them from you. Listen well readers, blessings aren't assigned to us to forever be with us, we need to accept them, take that first step, if we don't aggressively keep a hold on them, someone else will take your blessing. :)

Much Love,
Wachi