It's Monday and a Whole Week of Possibilities is Waiting!

Good Morning My Confidants

How are you this morning?

If you're awake and sitting up, you have something good. A very dear friend of mine has that, but last week, we weren't sure if they ever were going to again. It was pretty damned scary. There have been tears.

Thankfully this morning's tears are joyful.

Giving thanks!

It is 63° out this morning as I write these words! How amazing is that?

The front door is open, I'm sitting in my chair which is right by the door, there's a modest breeze that is slightly chilly, but mostly wonderful. The breeze is causing my multiple wind chimes make music. I can hear cardinal song, which is one of the most beautiful bird songs there is.

There is a dog curled up against my butt and another thinking about using my shoulders as her chaise lounge. I can see it in her eyes.

There is a cup of coffee at my side. There are two Ken dolls that represent the story I'm working on, and a very special Barbie, next to my coffee.

One spouse is safely off to work, and I had coffee with him before he left and both our phones were down (except to look, together, for a doggie product we wanted). In other words, we spent that 20 plus minutes together.

My other spouse is upstairs sawing logs. He's been building these wonderful shelves in our living room that has allowed us to alphabetize and have at our fingertips our movie collection, plus display some of our wonderful little tchotchkes.

It's a Monday morning and I don't have to work. As a matter of fact, I'll probably never have to work again. At least not a job I don't want to do. I've wanted that since I was 15, and I have seriously wanted it for about the last 10 years. And here I am, in a financial situation where I am surviving without doing something I hate to make that money.

And then there's the blessing that it's a three-income household (how do monogamous couples afford to live anymore?).

I have good friends. Two of them are coming over tonight and I already have a big roast in the slow cooker and in a few hours the house will be filled with wonderful scents.

Yesterday was a Three Bears Day and we went out for Chinese for lunch, then saw the spectacular new Dune: Part Two, which it was everything that I waited and hoped for, plus.

It's an important book for me, and another thing that just about anybody who reads my posts knows, I hate a crappy book adaptation.

If you're not going to make it like the book, then don't make it. There's no point. Just make up your own story instead. And for the person who told me it was a tired old excuse to be annoyed by adaptations that change everything, well there's a four-letter word I could say in reply, but I won't. Because I'm not thinking about things this morning that annoy me, I'm thinking about blessings. And yesterday was a pure blessing.

And I dropped another 1.6 lbs, making it a total of 20.8 pounds gone!

I really do have so very much to be thankful for.

And when things were really, really bad? What got me through was remembering the things that I did have to be thankful for.

And there's the fact that my brain doesn't automatically go to the negative with everything that pops up around me. I don't say, "Well let's see how long that lasts. It's probably going to go to crap!" That's not something I do.

I don't have a house or a timeshare on Fire Island, but that doesn't mean I won't. I've never been to Provincetown, I've never been to San Francisco with Noah, I've never been to the Florida Keys, but I could, and I suspect I will.

I don't have the big ranch style house that I want with a giant privacy fence so I can sunbathe in the backyard if I want to. But it could happen. It really could.

Anyone who ever reads my Facebook page or my blog entries knows that I believe in the Law of Attraction, that whatever we think about, and thank about, we bring about. I believe it because I see it every day. But even if you don't believe.....

....as I've said here over and over and over again....

According to the Mayo Clinic, and that's big, simply scientifically researched and proven benefits of positive thinking include increased life spans, lower rates of depression, lower levels of distress and pain, greater resistance to illnesses, better psychological and physical well-being, better cardiovascular health and reduced risk of death from cardiovascular disease and stroke (that's a good one for me!), reduced risk of death from cancer (my biggest fear), reduced risk of death from respiratory conditions, or infections, and finally (!!) better coping skills during hardships and times of stress.*

for no other reason, even if you don't believe in New Thought or witchy wo wo, then there's just a simple health benefits from thinking positively.

And when it's hard to think positively? Because boy there are those times! Then I've discovered the best thing to do use mood elevators, and I don't mean drugs.

Eating super foods helps a lot, foods like greens, blueberries, green tea, red bell peppers, walnuts, almonds, nut butter, okra, flaxseed, edamame, bananas, chocolate (and isn't that great? Of course, remember quantity quantity quantity! LOL!), avocado, salmon, cottage cheese, and so much more.** Foods proven to improve our health, both emotionally, and physically.

And here's the other thing. Do things that make you laugh. Play with a dog. Get a laser light and play with the cat. Watch good romcoms. There are really good ones out there. Watch sitcoms. And yes there are good sitcoms. Read funny books. Watch some stand-up comedy. Look for memes and reels that will make you laugh. Call a friend that can always make you laugh. Laughter is an incredible mood booster.

I mean it's hard for me to cry when I watch a video of a cat leaping in the air in surprise because of a cucumber, or a puppy tilting its head in confusion or sliding across a hardwood floor.

This is what I hope for you today....

That this Monday morning you are not looking at the coming week with Dread. That in some way, and you can choose to, you can see the possibilities of blessings. Good things. Good company with a friend. Maybe a movie you've been wanting to see (I heartily recommend Dune: Part Two. LOL!).

Get a Ken doll! Or a Barbie! Talk to them. They're good listeners. They will never interject their unwanted opinion or tell you that you are wrong (unless you let them).

You know, it's more than my hope for you today!

It's my challenge for you. Look for a silver lining no matter how small. Find a joke that will make you laugh. It can be a really bad joke. Think of someone you love, they don't have to be on this physical plane anymore longer. Think of all the wonderful things that you did together, and then claim that Joy, don't get sad because you can't do it anymore. Because you can always play it over and over in your mind.

Find some things that will make you laugh out loud. And keep looking for them.

Make a list of all the things that you really do have to be grateful for. Work on it on and off all day long. Every time anything that's good strikes you, put it on your list. And by Friday? Why, it could be huge!

If you let it.

Today I am grateful for the temperature, the breeze, bird song, windchimes, good coffee, fur babies, the memory of fur babies no longer with me, my dolls, humor, the fact that a movie I waited three years for (and I could also say waited for since 1984) was everything that I hoped for and more. Friends coming over for dinner tonight! I mean, I'm just barely scratching the surface here. There is the incredible fact that my friend that we were concerned about is doing better and even getting all demandie-pants, I can't help but smile looking at this list.

Tell me things that you are grateful for. Simply by commenting you're starting a list. Start a list....

Namasté,

BG "Gentle Ben" Thomas

* Stress Management: https://www.mayoclinic.org/.../positive.../art-20043950... health benefits of positive thinking&text=Lower rates of depression,psychological and physical well-being

** 31 Delicious Superfoods That Will Boost Your Mood, According to a Nutritionist: https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/.../foods-improve-mood/