I’m going to make this short and sweet and right to the point.

I’m a summer girl.
And I hate winter.
But, I do love NOVEMBER.

And it’s not because of the reasons so many others rave about– like “sweater weather” or “breathtaking forests” or “pumpkin spice lattes” (gross) I’d rather be in flip flops on the beach drinking ice tea.

But I live in New England, so that perfect trifecta only happens a few months out of the year. And November isn’t one of them.

So why is November my 2nd favorite month of the year? Because it’s…

National Gratitude Month

and

National Adoption Awareness Month!

Those two things together make me warm and fuzzy inside, even if it’s 50 degrees outside.

This month more than any other, I really try and create more space for gratitude in my life through simple practices like creating a gratitude jar, keeping a gratitude journal, being intentional about expressing gratitude more often to people in my life, and feeling appreciative for so many things including the gift of adoption that touched my family many years ago.

There has been multiple research showing that if you spend just a few minutes a day either writing or expressing gratitude and appreciation, it can actually improve your physical and mental health, your relationships, your resiliency, and your long term happiness.

Gratitude is also addictive—another benefit that research has discovered. Acts of kindness and feelings of gratitude flood our brains with a chemical called dopamine. When we are truly grateful for something (or someone) our brains reward us by giving us a natural high. Because this feeling is so good, we are motivated to feel it again and become more inclined to give thanks, and to do good for others.

But it doesn’t matter if gratitude makes us healthier due to the power of positivity, or if the dopamine in our brains sets off a chain reaction of gratitude. Every study done on the subject of gratitude research has indisputable evidence that gratitude benefits our bodies, minds and souls.

So, how about a little GRATITUDE WRITE NOW?

I invite you to join me next week (November 15-19) for a FREE 5-day Yogic Writing challenge to cultivate a Gratitude practice. I’ll send you an email each morning with a simple exercise to strengthen your gratitude muscle, and I’ll meet you in my Facebook group to share your practice and appreciate and support each other. (The Facebook group participation is optional.)