The last 2 weeks have been stressful, with my internet service down on several days and my computer in the shop for 9 days. I also had the edits for both my new books given to me on the same day last week and undoing some of the editor’s damage for one of them increased my agita. My deadline for it was yesterday. I worked long days on it and did little else. Right after I finished it last night, my computer went off for no reason. Grrr…. I was at the Apple store for hours and must bring it in tonight to leave it for at least a day as they replace another part. It’s still shutting off randomly still so my nerves are shot as I work and save every few words. That’s why I haven’t posted on this blog all week.

Because of all of the above, I felt out of line with my flow. Life didn’t seem so good—until I posted at least one blessing each day on my Conscious Gratitude list on Yahoo.

Each day as I was frustrated by a tech problem or editor, I looked for blessings and found them. Posting them made me feel blessed, despite the glitches going on. It kept my spirits up. I began my Conscious Gratitude list last year. Anyone can join and post their blessings. I read everyone else’s and it revs me, also reminding me of things I might not have thought to feel gratitude about. Small things that are a blessing to someone else remind me that I have that blessing too.

Finding your blessings when things are going right is easy and fun.

* I got a raise—Yeah!
* My romantic partner did something special for me—Yummy!
* The weather is glorious and I have time off—Fun!

And so on. It truly is good to count those blessings and show appreciation for what you have. As I’ve said in other posts, expressing gratitude attracts more things to be grateful for, and it feels good. So enjoy the days when blessings are easy to count.

The trouble is, we often neglect counting our blessings when they’re not obvious. Finding them when things aren’t going right can seem impossible, especially if you focus on the negatives. But that’s when you need to find them the most! When things aren’t going so well, finding blessings can pick up your mood. There’s always a blessing if you look! Often many if you don’t stop looking. So look!

I’ve gone hiking high in mountains with little growing. It’s windy and dry. But every once in a while, there’s a little flowering plant in the midst of flat dry ground. Now that’s a blessing to appreciate! Often you need to stop and think about what you have to be grateful for or find the blessing in a situation that doesn’t seem like one.

* You may feel overworked but someone smiled at you.
* It may be a freezing cold day, but that burns more calories!
* You learned a valuable lesson from making a bad mistake.

There’s always a blessing in the darkness if you grope around for it.

This week I found my blessings, despite my frustration about working without my laptop and a days without emails. I had the blessing of being able to borrow a laptop to work on. And the blessing of getting more work done without emails. I might not have thought of them had I not consciously looked for blessings to post.

That’s part of why I love my Conscious Gratitude list. Being able to post blessings every day keeps me more conscious of the ones I have. My desire to post forces me to look for them, which is a blessing in itself! It really helps to keep me positive when circumstances may not seem that way. I also like getting ideas from what others post and read every one because of it. Often I see what someone else considers a blessing and think “I have that too!” So my list can also serve as a consciousness-raising.

If you’d like to join the list and experience a consciousness-raising for your own blessings, please join. It’s free, there’s no obligation to post, and nobody comments on what you write. You can read more about it at Conscious Gratitude.

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