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Happy Thanksgiving!

Lisa E. Scott's picture
Submitted by Lisa E. Scott on Nov 23 - 5PM

It is easy to forget the many blessings we have, which is why Thanksgiving is such an important time to cherish all we have to be grateful for in life. The present truly is a gift to be cherished. An attitude of gratitude can change your life.

When I stop in the moment and ask myself if I'm ok, I realize I'm not starving, I'm not oppressed and I'm not a prisoner of war somewhere. I'm in a safe place and have much to be grateful for in life.

We have to stop allowing ourselves to slip away from the present moment. Did you know that ALL of our anxiety comes from worrying about the future or regretting the past?

This little saying helps me re-focus when I find myself struggling to stay in the moment:

Yesterday is History
Tomorrow, a Mystery
Today is a Gift
That’s why it’s called
The Present

It is a daily conscious effort to stay in the moment, especially in today's busy world. Appreciating the simple things in life is a good lesson for those who need to learn to live in the moment. By doing this, we begin to engage our senses to the point where everything we experience becomes more real and vivid. When we sense everything around us, we start to feel life.

This is when we begin to ENGAGE in life rather than merely OBSERVE it.

This is living!

While it may not be easy at first, we can learn to enjoy the present moment and live life to its fullest by accepting that we are on a journey into the unknown. Instead of being afraid, let this inspire you!

Life should be a journey...an adventure. We are not supposed to know what happens next.

Live each day as if it were your last and cherish every moment of it. Learn to live with uncertainty for this is the first step on the spiritual path of awakening.

Become fascinated with nature. The beauty of nature is one way God shows us he exists. Beauty provides us with a source of inspiration that is available everywhere to everyone. Embrace the gift of the present moment and realize how blessed you are. The present moment is all we really have.

The present should be the primary focus of your life. You can always cope with the present moment. However, you cannot cope with something that hasn’t happened yet and you cannot change the past.

As you know, I feel very strongly that it's not about WHAT happens to you in life. It's how you RESPOND to it that really matters.

You can control how you respond to the present moment, and how you respond to the present moment determines your future. We have a choice to be happy and embrace the moment or be miserable and remain stuck. I choose to be happy and hope you will join me in my journey.

I wish all of you a truly wonderful Thanksgiving. I know I am very grateful for each and every one of you and know that we have found each other for a reason.

"Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has many--not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some." ~ Charles Dickens

Love & Light,
Lisa

Nov 24 - 9AM
Layla
Layla's picture

Happy Thanksgiving!!! : )

"and know that we have found each other for a reason" Amen to that!!! It makes me smile to think you took an awful situation and made something beautiful out of it. Beautiful YOU. Happy Thanksgiving! love~ Layla
Nov 23 - 9PM
Goldie
Goldie's picture

Oh Lisa this is beautiful

I was having a moment this morning and while speaking with you (Lisa), I came up with a solution and later on in the day it worked like a charm. I called you my "lucky charm" today. Yes all of our friends and loved ones are our "lucky charms." This is what to focus on, NOT the other. My son asked me if I wanted to go for a walk today with our pup, Zach. It was raining and a bit chilly and I had tons of stuff to do for the Thanksgiving feast and I didn't really want to go. I said yes, anyway. He had been walking the other day and found this unknown by most, reserve in the woods. I had never been there before and off we went. I was walking down the trail and was thinking about how true joy only takes place in the now and I decided to make this moment about the now. I was amused by the dog and how he kept checking on both of us to make sure we were o.k. as we walked. He was sniffing about and he seemed to have a smile on his face as he blazed the trail for us. My son said, Mom I like this trail because it is not well marked and you can explore at your own will. I was struck by the colors of the Autumn woods. The bright yellows, and greens. The berries still on the tree's where most had already fallen off. Then we came upon a pond and two swans were swimming about and I remembered that swans mate for life and I was happy for them. As we walked we saw on the left a rushing brook and the pup ran over and jumped in he was mesmerized by the rapid movement and wanted to partake in the activity in the stream. After our walk I went to the Supermarket to buy those last minute items for my dinner and was patient with the shoppers who were nearly plowing you down in a frantic effort to shop fast and get out. I came home and by now it was nearly 5 and I had so much work to do. I took a deep breath and knocked out 2 cranberry breads, a pumpkin bread, cranberry sausage stuffing, squash, potato's, broccili, sweet potato's, corned beef hash, fruit, bread, coffee in the auto maker, and sausages for breakfast, and snacks for Thanksgiving eve. Not bad and it is only 10pm. And the best part of all is that I did not think of or speak of narc at all. I was tempted on the walk when a thought came into my head and I said, I am not going to do it my son, he has suffered enough with this crap, this is our time together and the thought just slipped away. Choices, we have choices every minute of the day and every step of the way. Choose life and Thanksgiving or choose you know what, the other. Have a blessed Happy Thanksgiving each and everyone of you and when those thoughts come into your head, remember you have a choice, to entertain them OR let them slip away. Love my sisters and brothers in recovery, God bless, Goldie
Nov 26 - 8AM (Reply to #6)
Lisa E. Scott
Lisa E. Scott's picture

Thank you

for the sweet messages, everyone! You have no idea how much your words mean to me. I'm so glad we found each other and like I said, I know we did for a reason. There is no doubt in my mind about that. We found each other for a reason and for that I am very grateful. Beth - I'm so happy you had such a magical day and I love your point on how we are each other's lucky charms. So true! I especially love this when talking about thoughts of the ex-narc: "When those thoughts come into your head, remember you have a choice, to entertain them OR let them slip away." The minute we allow ourselves to engage in the the thoughts is the minute we start the cycle of obsession. Remember: We cannot AVOID the thoughts, just like we can't AVOID the messy things that happen in life, right? What we can do is control HOW we RESPOND to the thoughts and what happens to us in life. It is our RESPONSE that determines our future! Accept that the thoughts will occur, but feel confident in the sense that HOW we CHOOSE to RESPOND to the thoughts is something we can control. The second we decide to engage in the thoughts or entertain them in any way is the moment we give the obsessive cycle permission to start. Once it starts, it's harder to stop. Instead of doing this, make a choice not to RESPOND to the thoughts and they will go away more easily. Don't fight the thoughts because they will occur and the minute you tell yourself NOT to do something, you're going to want to do it, right? Therefore, acknowledge the thought. HOWEVER, instead of entertaining the thoughts or engaging in any way with the thoughts, tell the thoughts to eff off or simply dismiss them as not worth your precious time. That is the key to managing our obsessive thoughts about our ex. We have a choice at the moment the thoughts enter our mind. like Goldie said: "When those thoughts come into your head, remember you have a choice, to entertain them OR let them slip away." Thank you for making such a great point, Goldie and showing us how to empower ourselves and embrace the power of the present. You are such an amazing writer and so inpsiring! Here's to all of us for empowering ourselves by cherishing the moment and dismissing the thoughts that attempt to distract us from the beauty and power of the present. xoxo, Lisa
Nov 23 - 7PM
ruby01 (not verified)
Anonymous's picture

Gobble Gobble-

Which means Thank You!
Nov 23 - 7PM
wisdomneeded
wisdomneeded's picture

Blessings to you Lisa...

and all the wonderful people on this forum. When I think of blessings this year this forum is on the TOP OF MY LIST!!! There were more times than I care to count that I came to this forum ... where I received wisdom, information, tough love.... this forum kept my sanity. As Lisa's post said "As you know, I feel very strongly that it's not about WHAT happens to you in life. It's how you RESPOND to it that really matters". I couldn't agree more...Thank you and God bless each of you. Wisdom needed
Nov 23 - 6PM
Hunter
Hunter's picture

Such a great post!! Happy

Such a great post!! Happy Thanksgiving to you Lisa and all.. Hunter
Nov 23 - 6PM
freaked
freaked's picture

Happy Thanksgiving to you Lisa and all at the forum

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO YOU LISA, GOLDIE, SCOOP, ARWEN, HUNTER, USED, SPINNING,EMPATH, UK LADY, AND ALL THE MEMBERS HERE. Your site has helped me so much. Yourself and the Mods..have worked tirelessly and from this corner of the earth a beacon of gratitude is shining out to you and the angelic Forum.
Nov 23 - 6PM
needing2know
needing2know's picture

GOD BLESS YOU LISA!!! Have a

GOD BLESS YOU LISA!!! Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, may you and your family be blessed each and every single day! I know I was blessed the day I found your website! THANK YOU for helping me and so many others!