Do you ever wish there really was an "easy" button in life? I'm gonna let you in on a little secret. There is one! And it's totally free....

If you didn’t notice, or don’t pay attention to that sort of thing, there was a full moon this week. Ask any teacher or EMT and they will tell you: “full moons matter.” After all, the moon is powerful enough to change the tides and move the whole ocean! And your body is mostly water.

Each full moon seems to have a different effect on people, but miraculously that effect seems to be predictable and similar across people for any given moon. The full moon this week was a doozie for a lot of us, especially those of us who struggle with “control.” It poked at our sense of will and choice. It ruffled our resistance and woke up our stubbornness. It pointed out the things we can’t (or at least feel we can’t) change - leaving us with feelings of anger, disappointment and irritability. And so on.

And, unfortunately, these effects can start as early as the last new moon and continue until the following new moon. (Typically, a spread of a few days on either side of the full moon is more “normal” for most people though.)

I know this can be rough, even those of us “in the know” struggle immensely with the energetic pull of the moon, but these full moon challenges are really meant to be opportunities. That sounds crazy, I know, but it’s so true. How can you deal with something if you don’t know it’s a problem? Or, if you do see the struggle but are avoiding it, the power of the full moon makes your struggle no longer avoidable - it demands to be seen, heard, and dealt with!

I have an amazing tool to help you and it is SO EASY to use. So easy, you probably don’t value it for it’s true power. It’s a little thing called gratitude.

Something as simple as a daily, 5 second, “I’m grateful for house/bed/breakfast/spouse/kids/etc” is super powerful. Add to that just a little more thought, intention, and heart and - KA-POWIE! - life changing stuff. Seriously.

This past month has been an “interesting” one for me. I’ve faced more disappointments, (potentially) bad news, awkward situations, frustrating scenarios, bumps, hiccups, disturbing thoughts, and so forth than I care to recall. And yet, I also feel so much more capable than I did just one month ago. And I’m taking better care of myself. Looking more at the bigger picture. And overcoming a lot of junk that has been weighing me down.

And I owe it all to my gratitude practice. Yes, I did other things like meditate and run energy clearings and talk to trusted friends, but I am certain depression would have taken hold and drug me deeper and deeper if I didn’t lean on my daily gratitude practice.

If you’d like to learn more about my gratitude practice, you can get a free version of my “Seeds of Gratitude” exercise here. But to get the full effect, I highly recommend you check out the full book.

November, the season of the infamous “Gratitude Challenge,” is almost upon us. “Cultivating Gratitude” also makes an excellent hostess gift for Thanksgiving and holiday parties as well as gifts for teens, friends, teachers, scout leaders, and more! Don’t forget to snag one for yourself as well - they are the perfect way to kick off your new year’s wellness resolution.

Learn more here.