Grounding in Gratitude

It is important to have practices to keep us grounded to the Earth, connected to the Divine, and centered in our hearts. One of my favorite practices is this little morning ritual I have. After putting the water on to heat for my French press coffee, I take a pinch of dried lavender petals in my hand, step out onto my balcony, and greet the day with an offering of gratitude.

I express gratitude for my life, the new day, the earth, the sun, the sky, the wind, the rain, the birds chattering in the trees below me, the homes I see and the families who live there, the river, the colors that enliven my world, my home, the people I love, for the myriad of blessings of the day. And I ask that I may be a blessing to the world, to those I meet, to those I love, to myself.

I blow all these prayers into the lavender buds, and release them to the wind to carry them off. This morning, before I could blow them off my palm and out into the world, the eager wind came and took them from me. As I watched my prayers take off, I looked up to see this Cloud Guardian watching over me.