result

happy happy..., originally uploaded by archanasr.

30 days, give or take a few more, and the result...

I'm happier.

The vomit meter on my brain has receeded and The Smiths have been replaced with Coldplay's newest. (Yes, I was hooked by the itunes commerical last night during Lost. Suck it).

Regardless, a more happier anthem.

I thank those of you from the bottom of my heart who played along, shared along, commented along. Reading all your gratitude instantly made me more grateful...for your kids I'll never meet, your families, your alone time, your beauty...all of it. I then felt better about my life...my man, my health, my loves. Imagine how that works.

Someone commented somewhere in day 20s that this experiment showed 'I had a sweet soul.' I think that's the best compliment I've even gotten. Although the first time I got 'nice rack' from a boy I was diggin' was pretty fucking rad, I'd say this one was best to date. So thanks faceless friend.

I also realized too, that honesty is cool. Honesty about who you are, what you stand for, and the belief you have in yourself. Regardless of what others say or jobs you book, you can either own who you are...or you can pray to some US Weekly God and hope that you come close. But in the end, you still wake up you. With a decision to make. And, for today, I'm good with it. Real good with it. In fact, bring it on.

As for more gratitude lists...I'm keeping it up offline, and will contine to blog here about random nothings or planned somethings. If anything, to work on writing better sentences than the one above.

Till then.

Elbow and Thank You.

Comments

[Bon]

Yay!!!!!!!

That was totally worth it.

And thank you for inspiring so many with your experiment. :)

Awesome.

XO

[enjonel]

Thanks for the experiment :)

[alicein1derland]

Thank YOU, Annie. It's amazing how your attitude can be altered by your own will. Years ago, Oprah had many shows featuring what she called the "gratitude journal". She challenged her audience to write positive things every day for 30 days, and see if there was any change in their outlook. So.... inspired by her suggestion, I passed the gauntlet to my family. Do it for me, I said. So they did, but were obviously not as inspired as I was because I had to prod them every day. Then it got to be a joke - my husband would write things like "I'm grateful that my wife made my lunch today and it was edible". So everyone got creative and funny and it kept us laughing. Laughing is a good way to start your day.

To consciously acknowledge the good, instead of concentrating on the bad, is really admirable. To choose to be happy puts you way ahead in the game of life. I hope it stays that way for you.

[qxjit]

Thanks, Annie. It's truly rewarding to know that this experiment has had a positive effect for you. I know it has for me. I'm a lot more mindful of my gratitude throughout the day. I notice more readily when I'm grateful, and I'm more active about sharing my gratitude with people. The gratitude in the world has ticked up significantly, and that has a lot to do with you.

[Upquark]

Thank you Annie for putting this out here. And for putting you out here too. I am proud and humbled to have been and be a small part of this with you. (ugh - talk about pathetic sentences)

You summed it up though - there is nothing more important in this world than what you carry in your heart and in your head. The rest is the 'adventure' part. :)

[doog]

Fly high little bird!!

[AJ]

Good experiment! What should we play next?

[Marly]

It was a terrific 30 days. I cannot speak for anyone else but in reading all the posts and comments I think that we all learned a little more about each other and like it or not it is like getting to know a whole new family. I know that for the 30 plus days I certainly was trying to find things to be positive and grateful for. So my thanks goes out to Annie and the whole family....because it was fun!

[KatieKatie]

Posting my gratefuls here.. and reading others really helped me too.

My therapist had just told me about writing down gratefuls and suggested I do it - I honestly know that if you hadn't had this 30 day grateful I wouldn't have stuck with it. I forget too easily and get sidetracked even more easily.

So thank you.

I hope we can do it again sometime.

[nashira]

Dear Annie, I've had a wonderful time with this experiment, reading your posts and all the comments. I do too feel like this blog and all of us have formed a community that's not your typical internet community: I've found respect and honesty, kindness and deepness. Thanks so much for sharing your soul with us, Annie, and for allowing us to share ours.
Hugs for everyone!