A few days ago I started a very rewarding exercise! It’s not exactly physical, it doesn’t burn any calories (maybe like 2?) but it does bring me a lot of peace 🙂 I’m sure many of you do it as well or have heard of it.
I have started a Gratitude Journal! It’s simply a list of things I am grateful for. I had read that these types of activities really help bring happiness and especially awareness to people’s lives but I didn’t really put much weight into believing that. Just like I didn’t really think it would make a difference to write down what I ate every day. Then I started to do that a few years ago and saw that it really does help make changes in your life once you know exactly what is going on.
I decided to try quickly jotting down a few things in the journal and found that I couldn’t stop! I wrote for 20 minutes straight. The list ranged from “little” things like being able to experience certain foods to really big things like getting out of very bad situations in the past. The great thing about writing all of this down is that although I already knew about the events in my life (of course), I actually started appreciating them. I stepped back into the past and enjoyed my favourite memories again. So I thanked Allah profusely for His blessings. I also relived moments when I thought I would just die from stress, or hurt, or embarrassment, or hatred. And I also thank Allah profusely for His blessings in those times; not only for getting me out of them when I thought it would never end, but also for making me stronger by putting me through it all.
This list also helped me remember things that I’ve forgotten about so it’s kind of like a new clarity on my life. As if I just watched a movie of it!
I’m pleasantly surprised that this made such a difference for me. I found myself smiling randomly in the days after. I don’t even recall specifics most of the time, just the feeling of absolute contentment and knowing that, man am I blessed beyond belief!! ALHAMDULILAH! I have this spot of warmth in my heart from this list. I think because I’m a visual person this really made an impression in my mind more than anything else could have.
If you haven’t tried this before, I encourage you to do so and see if it makes a difference for you. I think what made a difference for me was including smaller things as well as the really big things because usually the big ones already stand out in our minds. It’s the little every day things which become routine that we take for granted. When we think about people who are less fortunate than us, it really hits us that they sometimes don’t get the experience of having 17 options of juice or going to see a movie. Thankfully with this list, it made me want to give even more. I want to make more donations this year Insha’Allah! I got this feeling of knowing that because I’ve had so many blessings already, more than I could have ever imagined, that if my life ended right now, insha’Allah I wouldn’t be dissatisfied. Sure I have a lot of things on my to-do list that I haven’t done or seen yet but I have to take account of all the things that weren’t on my list and I still got to experience!
There was one more way this list helped transform me. Didn’t think I was done yet did you?? 😉
I need to stop complaining!! Okay that might be far-fetched, but at the very least I need to stop being so dramatic about my problems. Especially verbally. I make this plan a lot and it never works out. After a few days I find myself getting negative again. I’m hoping that doesn’t happen again because it’s so draining, not just for me but for everyone around me. I don’t talk about good stuff enough. When I do try though, I find I see my areas of stress in a new light. They don’t seem as big and I find new solutions for them. Or even if there’s no new solution, there is the confidence to carry out an old one.
What I would like to do when I get overwhelmed with a situation is mentally go over my Gratitude List. What is one bad situation compared to all the good things I have going on? It might be as simple as remembering a fantastic meal (because I am seriously in love with food) or as awesome as remembering my favourite vacation (Disney World because I will always be young at heart) or as awe-inspiring as a particularly emotional prayer from the past (those moments are the best subhanallah!). People might wonder at the goofy smile on my face at an inappropriate time but it’ll definitely help reduce stress, iA.
Now how do I put this list to use for my health journey? It’s simpler than I thought. See, at this exact moment I am sitting in front of a platter of mouth-watering chocolate chip pancakes made by my awesome sister. And accompanying that is the sweetest syrup I’ve ever tasted. I’ve had three pancakes already and can easily go for the fourth. It’s staring at me. No one else at the table wants it. I can practically see my name written in chocolate chips! But I’m going to say no. Because I realize I’m being greedy. Instead of being grateful and reflecting on the delicious three that I just had, the three that filled my stomach perfectly, I’m trying to take more. My greedy self thinks it’ll be awesome to have one more, that it’ll make the experience better, but my sensible self knows that’s just not true. I always eat too much and ruin the experience. I feel bloated and feel like throwing up, especially lately because I don’t know what’s wrong with me! I’ve been eating so much, just stuffing myself every time I eat. I feel pretty gross these days. But right now I’m going to drink my cold water and reflect on how good my pancakes were. The three that are sitting nicely in my tummy, not fighting for space 🙂
motimuslim 