“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.” – Melody Beattie
It takes such a little amount of time to express that gratitude. Last weekend all of my children were home with me celebrating just a very normal event. It wasn’t a holiday; it wasn’t a birthday; it wasn’t a wedding or a funeral. It was just a very fun time.
How incredibly happy I was to be with them, and in the company of great life-long friends feeling the love and support around me. How blessed I am and how blessed we all are if on this short journey we can let go of the business and the stress and grab onto the short moments of blissfulness and love that life has to offer.
This month’s meditation by Oprah and Deepak offers: ” . . . to live in the here and now is our natural state of awareness but what pulls us out of present moment awareness is our mind’s resistance to the now, drawing us into the past or the future With meditation and other practices like conscious breathing or yoga, we become more aware of our mind’s habit of distracting us from the present. This then allows us to become re-centered in present awareness, the here and now.”
So let’s take this opportunity to re-center ourselves and appreciate what is being offered. It is all there for us.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Recipe of the Month: Kale Artichoke Dip
Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups frozen chopped kale (12 oz.) or 2 1/4 cups frozen chopped spinach thawed
2 cups frozen artichoke hearts (9 oz.), thawed and chopped
8 oz. reduced-fat cream cheese, at room temp
1/2 cup nonfat plain yogurt
2 TB minced shallot
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp ground pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Directions:
Preheat oven to 425°F. Coat an 8-inch-square baking dish with cooking spray. Combine kale (or spinach), artichoke hearts, cream cheese, yogurt, shallot, garlic, salt, pepper, and cayenne (if using) in a large bowl. Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake until starting to brown and bubble, 25 – 30 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.
Make Ahead Tip: Mix ingredients and refrigerate for up to 1 day. Add Parmesan and Bake until hot, about 40 minutes. From Eating Well Magazine.
A Simple Breathing Exercise
to Help Re-center Yourself
1. Close your eyes if you can.
2. Inhale through your nose evenly and deeply for a count of 8.
3. Pause for a count of 3.
4. Exhale completely through your nose for a count of 8.
5. Pause for a count of 3.
6. Repeat 10 – 15 times.
– From Conscious Breathing Alive
