Experience your Life through Gratitude, Intention, & Happiness-Beware of your Desires

The holidays bring up so many great topics to discuss. Folktales, health, religion, family, materialism, capitalism, and gratitude. On the day of Black Friday, I am inspired to write about our attachment to things and expectations. A life chasing things and expectations does not leave one fulfilled. So while you're shopping in store and online, just keep some things in mind.  Do not get attach to things, for they are only the outcome of a desired experience. Staying focused on things only provides temporary satisfaction, but offers little if any fulfillment. Beyond the holidays, take this notion to your life, as I will my own. Things come and go. As we've seen through the natural disasters that have happened way too frequently in the 10-15 years, people lose their homes and belongings all the time. People have things, and want more things. Things could be material possessions, or even titles. Some people want a degree, a promotion, a relationship, a family. There's nothing wrong with these desires but what is your attachment to them. What is the "why" behind them? What do they represent? What is the desired experience and journey. around obtaining these things? Looking beyond the thing itself, offers one to live through intention as oppose to expectation. With expectation, there's a focused goal, or outcome; when even accomplished or received does not offer contentment in an individual. No appreciation. Think of times when you wanted something, and then you thought, ok whats next? no time to reflect on the joy of attaining that thing; no gratitude expressed for the journey to get there. You got it, and wanted something next.  Moving from expectation, to intention, allows one to be open to all experiences along the way. For example, many women want to get married and have children, but how many think about the experience? Not just having a family because that's what they saw in movies or were told to do, or even because they're lonely. how many set an intention of creating beings that will massively contribute to the greatness of society? or be the counterpart to a partner that will change was companionship looks like? Or for a degree, I can think of so many individuals who just got one to get one; or for better pay and not only hate their career field but didn't really care for the experience while attaining it.
When we see our lives through our hearts, from an intention setting place, we are more aligned with our God like selves. God already has abundance at our finger tips, but the ultimate goal in life is to love, teach, preach and heal. As a result, those "things" will come. 
Its the fact of staying in gratitude, and happiness will come. When you are grateful for all you have, and each experience in your life, your spirit is at ease, and you as an individual are happy. When you are happy, you are positive, and greater things tend to happen for you. Now just because you live in gratitude does not mean you will have all those riches in the world, for there are individuals in societies that do not focus on materialism and wealth as our western society does, but the point is that when you stay in intention, in gratitude, and are not focused on the "thing", the expectation, your life feels and looks completely different. 
Go through the goals you have, write them down. look at them, and beside each, write how you want to fee, or what you want to experience in their attainment. Also think about why they would be important to you? Whether its a partner, a flat screen tv, new car, or new promotion, when we are driven by "why"s as opposed to "whats" we experience life on another level. We are able to sit in gratitude, and be happier people, which in the end, increases our quality of life!

BE Intentional~
BE Unattached~
BE Free~
BE Grateful~

Written by: Tiffany Wright

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