A Fresh Perspective on Gratitude

November Insights 2025
By Regina Kaiser

Gratitude is the sincere expression of appreciation and thankfulness for something we have in the present moment.  To understand gratitude with our heart is to understand that every experience is one we experience with equality, whether we are taking things for granted and feeling entitled, jealous or greedy, fearful, appreciative, accepting, satisfied, content or loving. We choose to be grateful.

A Real-Live Experience

This past weekend I developed laryngitis.  I’d barely finished teaching the advanced meditation series, finishing with an epic cough attack that brought tears to my eyes.  I am grateful to all of you who held the space for me as I pushed through. That painful cough caused such a strain on my throat that my vocal cords became inflamed and I developed laryngitis. Now I can say I’ve had laryngitis!

To recover I had to not use my vocal cords.  It would be easy to rest the voice by not speaking for 2-3 days if you are only working on your own, perhaps at a computer or even reading. But as life would have it, I had to get some important errands completed.  Fortunately, almost everyone recognized what I was experiencing and was understanding and helpful.  My sweet husband did his best to make sense of the words I tried to speak that came out garbled.  Watching him process in such a caring way is enough to fill the heart with joy.

This was such a beautiful and valuable lesson in practicing compassion for self and others.  I witnessed the kindness and patience, loved ones, friends and strangers gave me. This made it easier to shift my personal impatience.

The Lesson

I was able to feel to my core how TRUST, ACCEPTANCE, and LOVE bring us to a deep level of gratitude.  Through this process I chose to trust that everything was exactly as it needed to be.

• I chose to accept and surrender.
• I chose to be and receive love.
• I also invited in APPRECIATION.

Where in your life right now can you invite in Trust, Acceptance, Love and Appreciation?    

Meditate and/or journal your way through this question, allowing yourself to be guided my your inner wisdom and the wisdom of the universe. Let go of trying to control the outcome.  Leave room for creative ways to see and experience something new.  The universe has your back.