Trusting = Gratitude

Written by: Colleen Nicole

Usually around Thanksgiving, we feel the need to reflect on what we are thankful for. It is good practice to acknowledge and express gratitude. But what about putting this into action daily? An effective, practical way to do this may surprise you and can be done at any given time, anywhere, without even sharing it with anyone (or posting it): by trusting spirit. By putting into practice that five letter word - trust - it sets the intention of your energy back into the universe tenfold. What better way to show your gratitude? Think about it. Have you ever given someone advice and had them thank you later? "I took your advice and it really helped me." Or have you ever taken someone's advice that really benefited you in some way? The act of taking someone's advice entails you to trust in the words said. Even without directly expressing the gratitude, trusting in the advice helped you in a positive way which assists in raising your vibration (just like the feeling you get when someone takes your help). If someone has ever "lifted your spirits" or gave you an "energy boost," this is raising your vibration. "Good vibes" make you feel positive and lighter and therefore strengthen your connection with spirit. Trust = gratitude = more trust. Talk about full circle.

Now apply the "trusting someone's advice" to trusting in spirit. This could mean trusting your intuition (the little voice inside your head that told you to drive instead of taking the train which in turn saved you from a major delay) or trusting a powerful dream you had. Trusting could mean following your gut when everyone around you is saying something different. Your intuition/dreams/gut feelings are your body's way of relaying spiritual guidance in a way that you will understand. By trusting in these things you are telling spirit, "Hey, thanks for the advice!" The gratitude is simultaneous with the trust.

Trusting isn't always easy and takes practice. We are wired to second-guess ourselves, especially when it comes to things of a spiritual nature. We don't want to be judged or labeled as "cuckoo" so we learn to suppress signs from our guides or we notice them without trusting them. One of my signs from spirit that I trust is seeing or hearing airplanes in the sky. Might not seem like the most significant thing especially for someone who lives near several airports...but once you take mental note of something (whether it is out of the ordinary or not), your guides will keep presenting them to you for validation and help along the way. A few years ago I was struggling with a breakup. The relationship wasn't healthy and I expressed not feeling like we were "copilots" of the same plane. One morning on my way to work, I was feeling like maybe I had made a mistake breaking off the relationship when an airplane flew overhead. It gave me a weird feeling like maybe it was significant. The plane then flew in sight for a big chunk of the ride until I acknowledged it as a sign - that I needed to soar on my own in order to get to the destination that would support my highest good. Ever since then, I notice planes in the sky when I'm in need of guidance. Sometimes if I'm at home and I'm asking for guidance (or sometimes when I least expect it), I'll hear a plane fly overhead. Instead of second-guessing myself - which I did plenty of times in the beginning - I take a deep breath, acknowledge the sign from spirit and modify my thinking if necessary. Sometimes trust is a matter of stepping back from inner denial to accept higher knowledge. I know I'm guilty of going against my gut (aka spirit!) but it is a work in progress. It is a common life struggle especially for those with intuitive gifts. When I trust my signs over denial and doubts, I am grateful 100% of the time (a plane just flew overhead no joke).

So this holiday season and every day ahead, express gratitude in the form of trusting higher guidance, and watch how it transforms your life.

Forgiving Yourself

I've been reflecting on my past recently. I've attempted to bring awareness to past decisions and choices I have made without judgment. I believe it’s because memories keep presenting themselves in my mind for some reason, but I don’t know why. I think it’s because my human self tends to bury emotions so I don’t have to deal with them. I’m sure many of you can relate. I’m feeling centered now, so these instances keep resurfacing in random bouts, flashes of vivid memories and feelings, replaying in my body. I've also been trying to make decisions on how to better myself for my highest good. I try to live by the saying, “live with no regrets,” but sometimes we make choices we seemingly regret. Sometimes we say things we don’t mean or we unintentionally hurt someone we love by our actions, or even hurt ourselves. Maybe we don’t even know we’re making a “choice” at any given time; we’re just living life, and sometimes we cannot predict what will happen.

I know I'm hard on myself,  and I feel like I've had a lucky life so far, but there are some ways I've acted or treated my body that I can pinpoint and say, I'm not okay with it. I’m not just going to brush it under the rug and act like I didn’t do those things I didn’t approve of. I didn’t know it at the time, but I know now. I'm moving forward with awareness of my actions, so when faced with similar circumstances in the future, I can make better choices. That's part of life, right? Learning, experiencing, improving. We get stuck in these life cycles that we’re supposed to learn from, and sometimes we don’t notice. We don’t notice until the cycle has gone around three or four or five times until a light bulb clicks on. We immediately distract and busy ourselves from our feelings; we don’t take a moment to feel or digest. Sometimes we have friends or people who love us who help us during these times and yet we are still blinded by our actions. It does take time, but I’m hoping we all notice and can expand our knowledge about ourselves to reach that higher self. Can you reflect on any past mistakes you've made and forgive yourself without any judgment? Going forward, just try to acknowledge and notice your actions, accept it, put it in your back pocket and keep going. The most important person in your life is you, and you don’t need to hold any resentment towards yourself. Put your hand on your heart and take a deep breath: forgive yourself, love yourself, and be open to a lifetime of getting to know that beautiful self because you’re important. You get up every day, you make choices, you live. And that life lived should be free, forgiving, open, and loved, among many other reasons. You can insert yours here.

Finding Beauty in the Sunrise

My favorite part about driving to work in the morning (despite waking up, forcing myself out of bed, and getting ready… I'm really not a morning person) is driving up an overpass before I enter the highway, and seeing the sun rising from the east. Every morning, I take a deep breath, take it all in, and smile. I smile because every rising day, the sky is the same sky, yet it always casts a different depiction of its personality. It dances, it cries, it shows its emotions of how it's feeling; I compare that as a reflection of everyday life.

We are always the same person (as the sky is always the same) yet we change momentarily - a reflection as the sky changes. One day, it’s radiant; those overpowering rays cast upon me, and I inhale - close my eyes for a split second - and feel gratitude. Some days, it's gloomy and I feel its sorrow, and accept it is part of life, and we need the pain. Mostly I feel its gratitude, in which I know the light shining upon me is planned, just as every day has been laid out before me. I like to think the Angels paint the skies, and they do it because they know I’m watching; they know we’re watching. So when you look above and get those goosebumps, or feel the feels, or get the chills, know that it’s Spirit. They give you that extra breath, that extra inhale you feel. Know they’re watching. And they know you know.

The world is much bigger than us. Sometimes we forget. Just know they always notice the little things. Always. When we pay attention and see, they know we’re watching. I always like sending my gratitude and acknowledge them for giving me the ability to notice.