Gratitude vs the rest of it all

What do you choose to do with the seeds in you that are not serving a space of gratitude? Are you watering and nurturing seeds of: blame, anger, sadness, envy, loneliness, self pity, bitterness, avoidance, ego, ignorance and all those damaging things that go on and on and on? Why? Why water and nourish these thoughts and feelings and unhealthy behavior patterns if they are not serving you? We are creatures of habitual behavior, that is why. We are set a lot of the time to default or auto pilot. Learned behaviors from family, society, influence of friends, desire to speak our truth and insecurity, all these repetitive patterns are enacted with a sort of waking mindlessness. We think we are aware of our actions and thoughts, often times we can be, but when it matters most, when we are not having a good moment, then our destructive patterns return and we return to our auto pilot, mindless self talk, mindless whining, nurturing the weeds of our consciousness allowing the flowers of gratitude to be choked out.
Recently, I attended a Kundalini workshop, I am forever wanting to open and learn about this practice of yoga in all its forms and while Kundalini may not take a primary role in my practice, accessing and purifying the chakras in this way is one way to find balance.  At one point we were asked to hold anger and move from this space, breathe from this space. I realized that after this daily discipline of gratitude I was finding this incredibly challenging. I release anger. I have been releasing anger as a discipline daily. So when we were asked to use it as a motivator, as a focus I struggled, but it was just that that inspired this post.
What am I grateful for? I make a mental or even at times a physical list each day. If I am in gratitude I cannot be in anger, blame, etc these states of mind cannot  co exist. Being aware of where your thoughts are drifting, maybe allowing yourself an indulgent whine or lament for a moment but quickly finding the awareness to come back to your state of grace.. acceptance. Acceptance allows for the space needed to cultivate gratitude.
Many a classic quote is conjured up for me, across all philosophies it rings true:

“Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don’t resist them; that only  

creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.”
-Lao Tzu

“The moment that judgment stops through acceptance of what it is, you are free of the mind. You have made room for love, for joy, for peace.”
-Eckhart Tolle

“Non-judgment quiets the internal dialogue, and this opens once again the doorway to creativity.”
-Deepak Chopra

Make a mindful commitment to challenge your own beliefs, to deeply look within at the ways in which you speak, think, act and if they are serving you, if you are in the flow state of acceptance, able to experience gratitude. 

If not, one moment at a time, question and ask why?

Nurture seeds of : gratitude, self reliance, strength, hope, wisdom, patience, mindfulness

What we are listening to:
Sat Nam ( I AM ) playlist