Gratitude: A Path to Happiness

I have been trying to focus on Gratitude more in my life, and came upon a talk that I just love by Sister Bonnie Parkin. The talk is entitled "Gratitude: A Path to Happiness", and a favorite quote from the talk was this: "Gratitude is a Spirit-filled principle. It opens our minds to a universe permeated with the richness of a living God."

Last year, Alex came to Arizona for Thanksgiving. We, as a family had started writing 100 things we were grateful for. By Thanksgiving we had them all written. It was a really neat thing to do, and I know if brought us closer together as a family. We had driven to the White Mountains to spend Thanksgiving with family, and on the drive home the only thing Alex wanted to do was to take turns saying things that we were grateful for. It was an experience I will never forget.

Today I want to take a moment to express to my family who reads our blog, my gratitude for them. I know that we are placed in a specific family, for a specific reason. I feel more grateful to my Heavenly Father now, for all the family He has given me than ever. I am grateful that my mom is my best friend, that she and I can talk about everything and anything. She told me once that she thought we must have had to be sisters in the spirit world, because our relationship is so strong. I am grateful for a father who's faith has never waivered, and who has been a beacon of strength, and love to me my entire life. I adore him. I am grateful that I was born oldest, so that I could be a "momma bird" (as Emery calls me) to my siblings, and help them through their trials and rejoice with them in their triumphs. I am grateful to all the extended family that I have gained through marriage, especially my 'Sisters'. I love you all very much.

So, with that said, I am going to be more grateful. Expect to see a beam of gratitude coming from this blog for the next while, and hopefully forever!