#liftmood – Presence and Positivity

Unexpressed

Today I heard someone say, “Unexpressed gratitude is interpreted as entitlement or even ingratitude.”

So I’m curious about this. The topic was to do with ongoing, close relationships where people sometimes get lazy in communicating what they appreciate about one another.

Does it apply in the broader scope of relating? Something to consider…

I’m taking this as a reminder to write out my thanks for the wonderful experiences (no matter how small) over the holiday season! 💛

Every genuine thank you lifts the spirt of another. It’s absolutely worth your time.

Cheers!

For the weekend, I thought it would be fun to share my Sangria recipe. Invite some friends over and have FUN!

Image result for red sangria

1 large bottle of Red Table Wine (I use Fronterra-Cab/Merlot mix $9)
1 cup of Spiced Rum
2 cups of GOOD Orange Juice, no cheap imitation!
2 small lemons squeezed or 7 seconds of lemon juice squeezed
3 limes juiced or 10 seconds of lime juice squeezed
1/2-3/4 cup of powdered sugar, start small and add to taste, using a whisk to thoroughly mix
8 oz bag of frozen berries, I stick mostly with raspberries, blackberries, blueberries and small slices strawberries because the taste the best when eating at the end.
3-4 dashes of nutmeg

A sliced orange can be a festive garnish. Mix and drink right away or keep it over night! Letting it marinate is never a bad thing.

Truly a party in a glass. Have one for me and if you try it I’d love to see a picture on the comments!

Purposeful Rise: a choice to feel better

“The thought manifests as the word; The word as the deed; the deed developes into habit; and the habit hardens into character … as the shadow follows the body – as we think, so we become. ” -Buddha

Post by: Tracy Weaver, Life Coach, EFT Practitioner

All of your emotions, from the best to the worst, are valuable to you. They let you know where you are, what’s going on with you. So, please be easy about them – and you. When you are feeling low, depressed, angry, unappreciated, at least you know what direction you want to head in: feeling better!

Your emotions follow your thoughts. Thoughts always bring in more thoughts of similar kind, feeding the current emotion, making it stronger. When you’re feeling really good, milk your mood! Enjoy it! When your emotional state could stand some improvement, what to do? I mean, just try not thinking about the thing that’s got your attention. Unless you are an accomplished ‘meditator’, your active brain just isn’t going to let you. So what we need is some way to distract that ol’ “monkey mind“.

That’s it! Distraction! Get your brain off one scent and on to another! So okay, you want to feel better, and you want to distract your brain away from its current track of thoughts. Here’s a way. Purposefully turn your attention to gentle, general things you already know make you feel good. Non-challenging things, soothing things. Anything will do for starters. “Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens.” I’m not kidding. If you are free to, go out and treat your physical senses to something that makes you smile and lifts your mood. As you do, you’ll naturally think about it. The first thought will pull in the second thought, the second a third, and as the happier thoughts continue and build, your mood will rise. Milk it, get in the habit of playing the game and celebrate the improvements!

I’m sure it sounds way too simple. But I can tell you from practice and experience that it works, reliably. You won’t leap wildly from dejected apathy to passionate joy. But, you can train your thoughts to move gently upward, a step or two at a time. As your mind gets better at this new skill, you’ll have a great tool to move on that new path upward to where you really want to live. And your thoughts will change.

Our Thanks to Tracy for contributing!