Aspire Magazine: Inspiration for a Woman's Soul.(TM) Aug/Sept 2019 Aspire Mag FINAL | Page 51

“There are only two ways to live your life.
One is as though nothing is a miracle. The
other is as though everything is a miracle.”
– ALBERT EINSTEIN
inducing and often left me feeling off center
and on guard. For years I lived “on call”
wondering when the next seizure would
occur. Every time the phone rang my body
reacted in stress and I lived perpetually in
crisis management mode. Not a week went
by when we did not need to change our
plans or schedule due to Fiona’s seizures or
migraines and we often missed holidays and
family celebrations.
In these hard times there was definitely a
teacher in the room and it was gratitude.
When I stopped resisting the need to let go
of how I thought things were supposed to be
and instead focus on the gifts in the present
moment, my quality of life dramatically
improved. Accepting the unpredictability of
epilepsy taught me so much about being
grateful for this present moment.
Learning to be present in the moment and truly
appreciate the now has been an empowering
self-nurturing practice and supported a more
artful approach to my life.
I have found that deep appreciation for the
present moment helps me feel more alive and
see the potential miracles and blessings around
me. Focussing on cultivating mindfulness,
allowed me to not attach my happiness to
whether Fiona was seizure free and instead
recognize how grateful I was for her strength,
courage, and perseverance. I have profound
gratitude for how resilient and resourceful
she is and how bravely she has dealt with the
challenges she faced day in and day out.
When I choose gratitude and being present
in the moment over feeling out of control, I
know I am living the wisdom learned from this
challenging journey. Gratitude allows me to
connect deeply to the peace, joy, and meaning
in each moment and savor life’s experiences.
I am so grateful to continue to nurture the
healing power of gratitude in my life.
I want to share with you seven ways I
practice gratitude so that you can embrace
the healing power of gratitude and nurture
yourself through your gratitude practice.
1. WAKE UP AND GO TO
BED WITH GRATITUDE
I love starting the day with “Thank you so much
for another day on this beautiful planet!” You
can begin and end your day with three things
you are grateful for to focus your attention on
what is going well in your life.
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