How Gratitude Helped Me ?
“Mom, sometimes you just talk too much and it gets too boring!” said my son after we spent 10 minutes talking about the value of honesty. He was being honest alright but I wasn’t happy. I wanted to say, “How dare you talk to me that way! You are so spoiled. You know how much I sacrifice for you and you can’t sit down and listen for 10-15 minutes for such important family values!”
But I didn’t.
Practicing daily gratitude has made me realize that even in the worse of the situation, there is something to be thankful of. It is this exercise of gratitude that allowed me to catch myself and my negative thought process. I realized that this negative talk was my ego speaking. So I decided to shift and ask myself “how can I be grateful for what my son said?” I decided that instead of spending time teaching him values, I will spend time just doing what he loves to do. That allowed me to connect with him at a level that he himself started sharing things with me that he normally wouldn’t.
Today is an example of that. He came to me and said, “Mom, I need to have a private talk with you.” And of course I was all ears! With his eyes tearing up he shared with me something that he had felt a deep level of guilt. I am thankful that my son felt comfortable to come to me with this. Harboring the feeling of guilt can affect ones self-esteem and self-worth. Now, I have an opportunity to help him deal with this.
Above is a small example of what gratitude has done for me. Gratitude has helped me in many different ways. As a result of practicing gratitude I am
- I am more mindful of my thoughts and others around me. I am able to look at events as opportunities to improve instead of another “thing” that happened to me.
- If someone was rude, I remind myself that there might be a reason behind their behavior. It makes it easier for me to let go and not let that behavior ruin my day.
- I am able to look at conflicts as an opportunity to teach or learn. As a result, I am able to stay calm and have developed skills to resolve such conflicts with my kids and others in a loving manner.
- I am able to see positive perspective in different situations and as a result I have been able to help so many children and families. I feel confident that I can make a difference in my life and others which has always been my dream..
About Aditi Verma
Aditi is a mom, writer, certified wisdom coach for kids ages 7 to 12 and certified teen wisdom coach for teens and youths ages 13 to 23. She believes it is vital for children to be balanced emotionally and intellectually to be successful in life. With Empower and Help, Aditi hopes to bring that balance into children’s lives by focusing on emotional intelligence and value-based learning. She believes personal growth within parents will natural lead to personal growth in children and so she also provides support and workshop for parents. Her vision is that of a connection, empowered and happy family for all her clients.