start monday with gratitude
week 44
Welcome to Week 44, lovely soul.
Below you'll find the video and video transcript introducing you to this week's quote and musings.
Scroll further and you'll discover this week's daily exercises, high vibe tune, and downloadable wallpapers.
video transcript
When we think of a catalyst we might think of something sudden, something profound, something that creates acceleration or a sudden burst of energy that brings about change. We might think of something that encourages a chemical reaction which may, indeed, create a spark.
We might also think of, what seems to me, a slower process of dissolving, should we consider the original and literal meaning of the word ‘catalyst’ which stems from the Greek word, ‘katalein’, meaning ‘to dissolve’.
However, we view a catalyst, it always brings about some kind of change, whether that change be sudden or gradual.
And so, it is the same for gratitude.
When you first begin a gratitude practice, you may begin by expressing gratitude for the small things in your life such as the bed you lie in at night, the roof over your head, the food on your table. As you discover gratitude for the small things in life, so your focus on what’s missing in your life, what’s lacking, begins to dissolve. And gradually, as your gratitude practice grows, you move away from lack, scarcity and what’s missing, and towards embracing the abundance that you already have in your life and are, now, feeling grateful for.
When you first begin a gratitude practice, as your focus turns to the abundance already in your life, it can impact you more quickly like a spark that ignites a fire. If your life has been only focused on lack, on scarcity, on what is missing or what others have that you don’t and would want, then incorporating a practice of gratitude can create a sudden spark of change, because it’s like opening the curtains to let the bright sunlight shine in. Even if you only begin by focusing on the small blessings in your life that you’ve always taken for granted, it can ignite a bright spark within you and create sudden change because you’re moving from a place of dark negativity to one that is brightened by positivity.
Every fire begins with a spark. It can be a small spark, or it can be a powerful spark. It really doesn’t matter. What’s important is that that spark catches. As the spark of happiness catches in your soul, before long, it will become a roaring fire of joy that lights up your life and your soul, that shines brightly, keeps your warm and staves the darkness.
The more we practice gratitude, the greater the hold it has in our life and the greater the brightness it draws towards us. From the initial spark of happiness that catches inside our soul and brings the idea of the warmth of positivity to a growing practice of gratitude which helps that spark take hold and begin to burn until our soul is alive and glowing with the fire of joy.
daily gratitude practice
monday
“…as your gratitude practice grows, you move away from lack, scarcity and what’s missing, and towards embracing the abundance that you already have in your life and are, now, feeling grateful for.”
You’ve been practising gratitude every day for most of the year, about 10 months already. With all the dedication to gratitude that you’ve invested, whether you have realised it or not, your mindset will have changed, your view on life will have changed and you will have moved your focus from one of lack to one of abundance.
Today I invite you to step back.
Today I invite you to think back to how you viewed life this time last year, before you began this daily gratitude practice.
How wrapped up were you in lack? How focused were you on scarcity? How much did you notice was missing from your life than what was present in your life?
Can you see just how far you’ve come, how much your mindset has changed, how much more positively you embrace life?
Express gratitude for the path you have been walking this year. Express gratitude for your dedication towards change, for the better. And express gratitude for all the abundance you now see in your life.
tuesday
Look back to when you first practised gratitude, think about who you were way back in week 1.
How much have you changed? How much easier does gratitude come to you now than back then?
Remember the times along the way, and there may have been many, when practising gratitude was a struggle and was challenging, when you didn’t feel in the mood to do it but you did.
Looking back through your journey from week 1 to today, seeing how far you’ve come, are you grateful that you chose to introduce gratitude into your life? Are you grateful that you now have this established habit that you practise every day, throughout the day? Does gratitude feel like something that now comes naturally to you? Do you breathe gratitude like you breathe air?
Spend some time looking back over the last 43 weeks, remembering the downs as well as the ups and how you had the resilience, the determination to push past the days that were a struggle.
Spend some time looking back over the 43 weeks, witnessing how your life gradually unfolded and changed for the better, how more and more abundance started to flow into your life.
How quickly did gratitude become a daily practice for you? When you first started did the spark ignite and spread quickly? Or was it a slower process of dissolving the old and replacing it with something new and more positive?
wednesday
It’s important to look back and review our journey. That way we can truly appreciate just how far we’ve come.
And that’s why I’ve invited you to do just that yesterday and Monday.
Now that you can truly celebrate your gratitude journey, to date, let’s play a game. Let’s lighten things up and let the fire of gratitude that has now be lit within you, shine even brighter.
Today I invite you to involve the help of another person, or a couple of people. It can be a family member, partner, friend or colleague. Depending on what you have in your agenda today, you decide who best to involve or if you should involve a couple of people.
Whomever you choose, ask them to periodically, without warning and randomly, stop you, email you, or text you and ask you to share 3 things you are grateful for in that moment.
And note how easily and quickly you can respond. Could you have responded so easily and quickly way back in week 1, I wonder?
thursday
Because you’ve been practising gratitude for quite some time now, because it’s become part of your being and natural to you, I’m going to invite you to, possibly, step out of your comfort zone a little.
Today I invite you to openly, out loud and proud, express gratitude towards people who cross your path.
It can be anyone. They can do something kind for you, and you express gratitude towards them or they can be someone who is part of your everyday life and, without them doing anything in particular, you simply tell them how grateful you are for them.
However, don’t simply say ‘thank you’, that’s far too easy. Tell them how grateful you are and why you are grateful.
friday
Yesterday you expressed gratitude to a number of people.
Today I want you to focus on only one person. That person can be a family member, friend, partner, close colleague.
Ask that person to set aside 10 minutes for you and then sit with them and tell them why you are grateful that they are part of your life.
At first, this may feel a bit uncomfortable, more so for the person receiving your gratitude than you (after all gratitude is second nature to you now).
Kindness and expressing gratitude isn’t something that everyone naturally does and, so, not everyone initially feels comfortable receiving it… and you may feel that energy coming from them.
However, I encourage you to persist for the 10 minutes and just watch as that person transforms and changes before you from being uncomfortable, to smiling, to really opening up to receiving the gratitude you are giving them.
saturday
We’re going to do something similar to yesterday but were going to up the pressure a little.
Again, find someone, one person, to whom you would like to share your gratitude.
Ask them to sit with you for 10 minutes and ask them to, after every statement you make, to say “what else?”
Don’t tell them that you will be expressing gratitude towards them, simply ask them to sit for 10 minutes and to always ask “what else?” after each statement.
Where yesterday you have 10 minutes to express your gratitude in your own time, today you need to be fast because every time they ask, “what else?” you want to immediately reply without hesitation.
Can you do it? It’s much harder than it sounds but give it a go and have fun in the process.
sunday
Sunday is always a good day for self-reflection.
When we express gratitude, we most often do so towards someone or for something in our life. But what about yourself? How often do you express gratitude for the person you are?
It can be tough turning the attention to ourselves.
However, you’ve been practising long enough now to do so.
So, let’s give it a go.
Today, take 10 minutes, by yourself, to express gratitude to yourself, for yourself. Extra points if you do this while maintaining eye contact with yourself in the mirror.
and let's not forget...
This week's high vibe tune reminds us that when you light that spark, everything will be alright
have gratitude wherever you go...
... with this week's gratitude quote wallpaper.
Note: details of how to download this week's wallpaper is provided below.
“Gratitude is a powerful catalyst for happiness. It’s the spark that lights a fire of joy in your soul” ~ Amy Collette
16:9
16:10
4:3
mobile
how to download your wallpaper
desktop
Before copying one of the pictures below, you'll want to quickly check your screen settings because the worst thing you can do is use a wallpaper with an aspect ratio that differs from the aspect ratio of your screen.
The aspect ratio of a rectangle is simply the proportion between width and height. The most common are 16:9, 16:10 and 4:3. And it will be for these 3 sizes that I shall provide you with your free wallpaper.
To find your screen resolution follow this basic guide. Steps for your computer may vary slightly but I hope this will give you some guidance:
- Right-click the desktop and select Display settings.
- Scroll down until you see "Resolution" (you may have to choose an "Advanced" option)
- To find your aspect ratio, divide the width over the height. For example, if my resolution is 1920 x 1080 then I would divide 1920 over 1080 to get 1.778, which indicates a 16:9 resolution. Similarly, 1.6 indicated 16:10 and 1.333 indicates 4:3
- When you've calculated your screen's aspect ratio, go to the picture below that matches that size
- Right click on the picture and select "Set as Desktop Background"
- Choose whether to "Fill", "Fit", or "Stretch" your picture - if you've chosen the right size "Fit" will be your best option
- Select "Set Desktop Background" and you're done
android mobile
- First, save the wallpaper image to your phone by pressing your finger on the wallpaper image and hold down on it until you see a menu.
- From here, click the “Save image” tab, and it will begin downloading.
- The next step is to set this saved image as your wallpaper by pressing and holding a blank area on your screen (meaning where no apps are placed), and home screen options will appear.
- Select 'add wallpaper' and choose whether the wallpaper is intended for 'Home screen', 'Lock screen', or 'Home and lock screen'.
- Another set of options will appear where you can choose where the photo you would like to use will be coming from, namely the Gallery.
- If necessary, crop the image to a suitable size. Once satisfied, simply click 'Done'.
ios smartphone
- First, save the wallpaper image to your phone by pressing your finger on the wallpaper image and hold down for about 2 seconds until a menu appears.
- From here, click “Save Image“, and it will begin downloading.
- The next step is to set this saved image as your wallpaper by, first, going to the 'Photos' app and selecting the wallpaper photo you've saved there.
- Click on the share icon on the lower left corner of the screen, then select 'Use as Wallpaper'.
- Then choose to set the photo as either the lock screen, home screen or both.
