Stop and Smell the Roses

“I remember the days I prayed for what I have now.”

I like this quote whenever I see it on social media because it’s so important. We are all on the path of bettering ourselves and living our proverbial best lives, but it’s also important to recognize our blessings…to stop and smell the roses. This seemingly small act is so powerful. It allows us to operate from a place of gratitude. This sets the tone for our day-to-day lives and helps us to realize that the things we stress over, in many cases, just aren’t that serious.

Counting our blessing versus our problems is easier said than done. Our problems usually weigh more heavily on our minds because we’re actively trying to find solutions or trying to circumvent them. To counteract this, we have to make counting our blessings a habit. A good way to achieve this is by keeping a gratitude journal. I kinda did this by accident last year. I have been keeping a yearly planner for as long as I can remember. I want so badly to be a plannerd, but I’m not 😐. I buy all the stickers, washi tape, etc. and then I only end up writing in my planner with no frills.

2018 was a challenging year so I did not spend a lot of time writing about what I was grateful for, but what I did do was write EVERYTHING I was doing from job interviews to exercising. Looking back at this allowed me to see how I was moving forward even when it seemed like my life was stagnant. Now looking back, I see things I have now that I prayed for then… This year I’ve decided to be more intentional. I’ve decided to keep a gratitude journal so that I can actively practice being in a place of gratitude. Some days I have lots to write about. Other days it’s just a one-liner. It definitely helps to keep things in perspective especially during stressful times. It also makes the good times that much sweeter 😊.