Ray's Daily

Ray’s Daily

May 29, 2019

https://rays-daily.com/

If you’re always grateful for the little things, it’s hard to avoid happiness. It’s a lack of gratitude that often keeps us feeling down.

Marc Chernoff offered his thoughts on using gratitude to offset the anxiety so many of us feel when things don’t go as well as we like. I know that when I remember all the good things in my life, I find they more than counterbalance the occasional bad stuff. Here in part are his thoughts.

How to Be Grateful and Strong When Things Go Wrong

How often do you let go of what you think your life is supposed to look like, and sincerely appreciate it for everything it is? If you’re anything like the rest of us, it’s probably not often enough.

Here’s an excerpt from 1,000 Little Things with some proven ways to find sincere gratitude when everything seems to be going wrong.

Be grateful around difficult people. – We expect people to treat us kindly, fairly, and respectfully. But the reality is some people won’t. They will lose their tempers or act foolishly, regardless of how we treat them. This must be accepted.

Don’t lower your standards, but do remind yourself that removing your expectations of others—especially those who are being difficult—is the best way to avoid being disappointed by them. At the very least, you can be grateful for them because they serve as a great reminder of how not to be.

Be grateful when you catch yourself starting to complain. – Many of us have developed a subtle habit of complaining when things don’t go quite our way. Gratitude is the antidote. Each time you notice yourself feeling bitter, or complaining, notice the story in your mind about “how life should be.” Instead of letting this story dominate you, find a small way to be grateful instead. What could you feel grateful for right now?

Be grateful when you begin to feel overwhelmed. – Have you ever noticed how the more familiar you become with an amazing situation or relationship in your life, the more you seem to take it for granted—and even feel annoyed or overwhelmed in busy and stressful times? Challenge yourself to flip your perspective in these moments, using a simple reframing tool we call “. . . and I love it!” Add this phrase to any overwhelming thought: I need to go grocery shopping, and pay the bills, and pick the kids up from school in an hour . . . and I love it!

Life’s disappointments and struggles are not easy to find gratitude for, but they can become incredible paths of growth if we find the lessons in them—if we start to see everything as our teacher. Truly, the best time to focus on being grateful is when you don’t feel like it. Because that’s when doing so can make the biggest difference.

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“Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.”

Robert Brault

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Be careful, many of these laws are still on the books

• When visiting Louisiana, remember that it is illegal to gargle in public…you can do just about anything else in public, but NO gargling!
• If you’re going to be driving through Utah, be alert because the birds have the right of way on the state highways.
• And walking down the streets of Maine with your shoes strings untied is also illegal.
• In California, its against the law to peel an orange in your hotel room….I guess its ok to peel it in the hallway & then go into your room.
• Whistling under water will result in more than getting water in your nose, it will also get you put in jail if you do it in Vermont.
• And while you and your beloved spouse are enjoying the Florida sun, don’t throw dishes if you happen to have a little disagreement with each other. If you break more than 3 a day, you could spend the rest of your vacation eating off of metal trays in the county jail.
• We’re not the only ones with the wacky laws. If you’re planning a trip out of the country be aware that….

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“Laziness is nothing more than the habit of resting before you get tired.”

Jules Renard

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She said: I’m writing you to let you know that I have recently been diagnosed with a serious condition and there’s little hope of getting over it. The scientific world is frantically searching for a cure. This is an ailment others also suffer from and may be undiagnosed. It’s called “Butfirst Syndrome.” It’s like when I decide to do the laundry – I start down the hall and notice the newspaper on the table. Okay, I’m going to do the laundry – Butfirst I’m going to read the newspaper. After that, I notice the mail on the table. Okay, I’ll just put the newspaper in the recycle stack, – Butfirst, I’ll look through that pile of mail and see if there are any bills to be paid. Now where’s the checkbook? Oops!

There’s the empty glass from yesterday on the coffee table. I’m going to look for that checkbook, – Butfirst I need to put the glass in the sink.

I head for the kitchen, look out the window, notice my poor flowers need a drink of water. I put the glass in the sink, and darn it, there’s the remote for the TV on the kitchen counter. What’s it doing here? I’ll just put it away, – Butfirst I need to water those plants. Head for door and Ack! Stepped on the dog, who needs to be fed. Okay, I’ll put that remote away and water the plants. – Butfirst I need to feed the dog. At the end of day; Laundry is not done, newspapers are still on the floor, glass is still in the sink, bills are unpaid, checkbook is still missing, and the dog ate the remote control. AND, when I try to figure out how come nothing got done all day, I’m baffled, because I KNOW I was BUSY ALL DAY! I realize this condition is serious…and I should get help. Butfirst I think I’ll read all my email!

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“The trouble with jogging is that the ice falls out of your glass.”

Martin Mull

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A New York family bought a ranch out west where they intended to raise cattle. Friends came to visit and asked if the ranch had a name.

“Well,” said the would-be-cattleman. I wanted to call it the Bar-J, my wife favored the Suzy-Q, one son liked the Flying-W, and the other son wanted the Lazy-Y. So, we’re calling it the Bar-J-Suzy-Q-Flying-W-Lazy-Y.”

“But, where are all your cattle?”

“So far, none have survived the branding.”

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“Gratitude turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity…it makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.”

Melody Beattie

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Ray Mitchell

Indianapolis, Indiana

Management is not responsible for duplicates from previous dailies. The editor is somewhat senile.

Ray’s Daily has been sent for more than fifteen years to people who want to start their day on an upbeat. If you have system overload because of our daily clutter, let me know and I will send you the information via mental telepathy. If you have not been getting our daily you can request to be added by e-mailing me at raykiwsp@gmail.com. Back issues are posted at http://rays-daily,com/ currently there are more than 2000 readers from around the world.