One sure way I have found to experience the flood of inspiration is to acknowledge all that I have to be grateful for and to fully embrace this feeling with my entire being - heart and soul. But how do we accomplish this? How do we capture and keep this feeling alive within ourselves? The saying "count your blessings" has become so cliche. It seems that the words barely register in our brains any longer, let alone in our hearts. So many times, throughout our days, we let the little moments pass us by. We don%92t notice the smile from a stranger and we don%92t hear the birds singing in the trees. The sunrise and sunset go by without a second look from us. And we wonder, what have we got to be grateful for? It%92s not as though we are ungrateful people. We are just so busy, cluttered with the details of our own lives, that we barely notice anything that is going on outside our own heads. Unless, of course, it ticks us off. However, one thing that I have found which changes all of this for a moment, is consciously starting my day by declaring it to be "A Day Filled With Blessings". Then I get up and actively look for the blessings. This immediately changes my perspective on the moment and lightens my mood. I quickly find, that as I look around myself, I am actually surrounded by blessings on all sides, both big and small, they are everywhere I look. At times this realization can be quite overwhelming. In fact this morning, I went to the mailbox and found a thank you card from someone. She wrote to express her gratitude for my invitation to attend the opening reception of my recent art show. I was blown away with gratitude by this gesture of hers. It was funny, but I could visualize her conceiving the idea to write this note. I could envision her writing it and feeling the gratitude towards me. This visualization was so uplifting, that I felt inspired to write this entry. Gratitude is also contagious, it goes hand in hand with inspiration...So pass it around. Until next week... Warm wishes to you all, Pam

Every aspect of your life can be an opportunity for meditation and contemplation. The trick is to remember this. Even washing the dishes; feeling the warm soapy water caressing your hands, hearing the sound as the water rushes from the faucet, the ever changing swirls of color in the soap bubbles. It%92s really quite magical if you look at it this way. The next time you are washing the dishes, try to remember not to "RUSH THROUGH TO GET THE JOB DONE". Instead, try to embrace the wonder of the experience itself and you will notice a new sense of gratitude filling your heart. Then delve a little deeper into this feeling. See what happens next. You can do this with any chore that may seem mundane. Shift your attention and notice the difference.