I just want to start off by acknowledging my wife, Kayla, who is not only the strongest person that I know, but a support system for me every bit as much as I am for her. Part of what I am here to share is on behalf of the both of us. I will start off by thanking the Dodgers: Andrew Friedman, Brandon Gomes, Doc, the whole coaching staff, and all of my teammates.
Love is more than a physical attraction and belief in the concept of soul mates. Love is also about choices, decisions, and even forgiveness. Lasting relationships can thrive when partners: Gratitude strengthens love It was a conversation with John Kralik, author of 365 Thank Yous, that inspired Revitalize Your Love Life with a Three-Day Gratitude Plan. With the gratitude plan, you are essentially clearing out feelings that keep your relationship from thriving. The ultimate goal is to create a mindset for unconditional love.
Last week, I watched a young guy at the coffee shop make the barista's entire day. Not with a big tip or elaborate compliment, just a genuine "thank you so much" and eye contact that said he actually saw her as a person, not just a caffeine dispenser. The barista's shoulders relaxed, her smile turned real, and suddenly the whole atmosphere shifted.
You get a coffee. The barista tells you how much you need to pay. You say thank you. They take your card for payment. They say thank you. They give you the coffee. You say thank you. They say thank you for your thank you. Then you say thank you for their thank you. By this point, the words thank you have lost all meaning, and both parties are exhausted by the pointless stream of politeness.
When I first read that, I was skeptical. But after trying it myself and digging deeper into the studies, the mechanisms started making sense. When we actively look for things to appreciate, we're essentially rewiring our brain's default mode. Instead of scanning for threats and problems (which our brains love to do), we're training it to notice the good stuff. It's like changing the channel from a disaster documentary to something that doesn't spike your cortisol.
Now, because I've done it so many times and I've been here for so long, I'm just cherishing the memories a little bit more. I'm paying attention to it a little bit more. Every time that there's other great fighters on the card, it just kind of builds the energy. We all kind of feed off each other too. So it's great.
Switching off negativity may take a process that involves neuroplasticity. According to Puderbaugh and Emmady ( Journal of Behavioral Science, 2023), "Neuroplasticity, also known as neural plasticity or brain plasticity, is a process that involves adaptive structural and functional changes to the brain." Simply put, it is "the ability of the nervous system to change its activity in response to intrinsic or extrinsic stimuli by reorganizing its structure, functions, or connections."
DEAR MISS MANNERS: I had a choking incident at the office today when I inhaled a cherry tomato. One of my direct reports did the Heimlich maneuver and helped loosen it, and then one of the guys from another department joined in to keep the tomato moving. As I recovered, a secretary from down the hall put a cold compress on my neck and forehead. I want to thank them, but don't quite know the right thing to do.
There is something strangely refreshing about the new year. Perhaps it's the sense that time coheres into a neat box, or the psychological appeal of getting a brand-new start. Culturally, humans have an intuitive understanding that the new year is a time for stock-taking. In matters of the heart, this seasonal pause offers an opportunity to recalibrate with a spirit of intentionality. Couples that succeed are the ones that regularly have honest conversations.
Every day you get closer to your death. This is the phrase that shook me to my core when my high school teacher, Mr. Murphy, presented it in Religious Knowledge class. I was 14 years old. I immediately objected, calling it depressive in an attempt to protect my classmates-or perhaps myself. He looked straight at me and said, "It is simply the truth. Take it as you wish."
It sounds like your friendship has a communication problem. You've expressed a want and your friend didn't acknowledge that want. It's understandable, then, that you'd feel disappointed. I imagine that if he's not hearing you when you ask for thanks, there may be other areas in which the two of you are disconnected. It's worth taking a step back and asking yourself what is most important in this relationship and how you can meet each other in the middle.
And, I'm grateful for my work - for being able to bring music, something beautiful, into the worlds of those who are truly suffering and provide some reprieve that helps in a small way. That brings some comfort, and maybe even some joy during a joyless time. I'm grateful that I get to connect with them through the healing power of music.
A spoiled kid is one who thinks and acts like the world revolves around them. They're used to getting what they want, when they want it - and if they don't, they'll throw a fit until they do. They show little to no appreciation for what they have and expect others to cater to them, often without contributing anything in return.
They help each other cope with difficulties, survive, and thrive together. That shared assistance contributes to their relationship satisfaction too. Even so, the supportive exchange between romantic partners is not a business transaction. Instead, like most processes of romantic attraction, it is both practical and emotional. Thus, we don't just mechanically reciprocate with a romantic partner; we feel and express gratitude for their efforts too. In turn, they feel grateful and express their gratitude back to us, creating a virtuous cycle of support and satisfaction.
Nothing sucks more than being soaking wet and being stuck on somebody's bus with zero heat and most of the windows open. It's official winter and it can get quite cold. Even the vibe can get kind of dark and make everyone, not just myself, miserable.
In these times of divisiveness, negative news cycles, and gloomy winter months, it can feel hard to keep our spirits up. But you have way more power over your state of mind than you realize, as my colleagues and I have researched and as I discuss in my new book SOVEREIGN: Reclaim Your Freedom, Energy, and Power in a Time of Distraction, Uncertainty, and Chaos.
Self-gratitude doesn't quite make sense because gratitude inherently involves acknowledging that the sources of goodness in our lives reside outside ourselves. When I "thank myself," what I truly mean is that I'm proud of myself. But pride and gratitude are different. When I feel proud, I attribute positive outcomes to my own efforts. Gratitude, however, recognizes external contributions -people around me, a higher power, nature, good fortune, and circumstances beyond my control.
One of the biggest adjustments newly minted single parents must make following a separation or divorce is adjusting to holidays without their children present, or present for only part of the time. Whether the kids are babies, teens, or young adults, the result can be an unfamiliar silence that can take some getting used to. As a family law attorney and divorced single mom (of four adult children) who remarried a divorced single dad of two more than a decade ago, my husband and I have walked (and are still walking) this road, just like you may be this holiday.
It's that time of year. The holiday season is filled with constant reminders to be more grateful and count your blessings. This rise in gratitude is the result of extensive research in the field of positive psychology touting its benefits on emotional well-being, sleep quality, interpersonal relationships, and overall health (1-4). Considering these benefits, you might be eager to encourage loved ones to practice more gratitude as a way to better cope with life's challenges.
Bipolar disorder I and II are each marked by lengthy periods of a depressive episode, which is expressed in a change in appetite (more or less eating), a change in sleep (more or less of it), anhedonia (i.e., the inability to experience pleasure in activities in which one did), and apathy (i.e., not caring about anything, including, at times, even pursuing treatment).
In that moment, something clicked. I felt the rush and the relief of sudden emotional clarity. I think this came from seeing that my psychoanalyst, by not apologising to appease my anger, by not taking an easy way out of the conflict, by persisting in offering me her honest thoughts about what was going on in my mind and by bearing my struggle to take them in, was giving me an extremely rare and precious experience.
Everyone's heard that expression, "Life is for the living." I've always assumed living in this context was a noun referencing all people currently alive. Now I'm looking at it as a verb. Think of it as a verb, as an action, as I say that life exists not for the dying of it, but for the living of it. Well, of course, right? Living occurs right now, in the present. Life is a gift.
It is a beautiful, late autumn morning as I sip a cup of coffee and watch the lingering, golden yellow leaves of a maple tree fall gently to the ground. The smell of banana bread completing its final minutes of baking wafts through the air. For this, I am thankful. This is the fifth consecutive year that I've been fortunate enough to publish this editorial here at Battery Power.
Every day, we have a choice whether we take our lives, our existence, our freedoms, and our moments for granted, or whether we express appreciation and gratitude for the good things that exist. The biggest unifier that all human beings have in common, that we all exist on the same world and in the same Universe, never gets the due it deserves. Here and now, it's possible for us to exist, and to exist as long as our natural lifespans will allow us.
It's a season for warm messages and "thank yous." This is why Thanksgiving serves as a reminder of the power of genuine gratitude in learning and the workplace, as well. In today's world of remote teams, deadlines, and constant learning, employees can easily feel overwhelmed. A simple "I appreciate you" can make a big difference to your team, as it can change the mood of the day, create a sense of connection, and remind everyone that their work is important.
I've never cared much for Thanksgiving. As a child, the forced family gathering was tolerable only because it marked the halfway point to Christmas (if we are measuring from Halloween, which is what we do in holiday math). As an adult, I came to understand some of the complications in celebrating a holiday with such a (distinctly American) white-washed backstory.
There is a particular ache that comes with knowing your family is seated at the dining room table, and a chair is conspicuously empty where you should be. This is the paradox of the first responder's life: serving the community, often witnessing the worst of humanity, while your own family sits comfortably at home, missing you. Yet within this tension lies something profound-a wellspring of meaning and gratitude that, when recognized, can transform a difficult shift into something sacred.
This article was a wonderful reminder of how much we really do need and how having a lot more cargo and cash doesn't give our lives meaning. At this fraught time, this identity crisis our country is going through, I wish for us all to be grateful for what we have and find a way for everyone in our country to have enough to feel safe, sheltered, nourished and maybe even happy.
You know the moment. Someone at the Thanksgiving table says, "Let's go around and share what we're grateful for," and suddenly you're scrambling. Your mind goes blank. You mumble something about family and health. You're not ungrateful: You're just experiencing what happens when gratitude becomes an obligation rather than an emotion. When practiced well, gratitude improves psychological well-being, strengthens relationships, and increases goal pursuit.
With the season of Thanksgiving upon us, many of us instinctively reach for gratitude. We make lists, we gather with family, and we remind ourselves to appreciate what is good. But in recent years, gratitude feels harder to cultivate. And we are not imagining it. Psychologically, emotionally, and culturally, we are living through an unusually heavy time. We carry political conflicts that divide communities and family tables.
