“Some people grumble because roses have thorns.  I am thankful that thorns have roses.”  Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr

I’m spending November intentionally focused on thankfulness.  I do love Thanksgiving, and not really because of the food.  I’ve tried to make this month have gratitude at it’s center ever since my kids were little.

So really, being thankful is most often an intentional choice and very often it is simply a matter of one’s perspective, switching from looking at a circumstance one way so that you can see the positives instead.

The quote I’m sharing is one example.  Another would be that I’m thankful for needing to rake again so I can get in some good cardio, OR, I’m thankful for all the leaves in my flower bed because they will protect my plants over the harsh winter.

I wasn’t always a glass half full kind of person. It took a very dear friend to help me turn my perspective around. There are still times I am tempted to think of the negative, but I fight against it actively. I’m so grateful for a persistent friend who impacted my life so positively!

What are some things in your life that you could grumble about today?  Can you take a different look at those things and come up with something for which to be grateful?