Cultivating Gratitude During Difficult Times


October 28, 2017


Quote of the Week

"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more." --Melody Beattie

How Gratitude Can Help You Through Hard Times

While it may be easier to feel grateful when life is going well, this article by Robert Emmons highlights why gratitude is worth the effort when disaster strikes. In the wake of recent tragedies and natural disasters, many people may feel despair and helplessness. "In fact, it is precisely under crisis conditions when we have the most to gain by a grateful perspective on life. In the face of demoralization, gratitude has the power to energize. In the face of brokenness, gratitude has the power to heal. In the face of despair, gratitude has the power to bring hope. In other words, gratitude can help us cope with hard times."

Reading Corner

Title: Gratitude Soup
By: Olivia Rosewood
Ages: 3-8

"Violet the Purple Fairy learns how to make Gratitude Soup by thinking of all the things, people, places, and experiences that she is grateful for, putting them in an imaginary soup pot. She is able to shrink her pot of soup with her imagination, and she keeps the gratitude warm and flowing in her heart all day and all night. Perfect for teaching your children about gratitude with fun and play, this rhyming, colourful picture book combines collage and watercolours as Violet the Purple Fairy tells her own story of cooking with gratitude. Your children might even be inspired to make their own Gratitude Soup!" -- Publisher

Be the Change

For yourself, try out one of these 5 recommended strategies for finding gratitude during difficult times. You may share this with older teens and ask them to try out one strategy as well. With children of any age, cook up a pot of "gratitude soup" and see what memories of people, places and experiences come up as you share what you are putting into your special soup.