Turkey, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie may fill you up on Thanksgiving Day, but make sure you leave a little extra room for a hearty helping of journal writing. Thanksgiving is a wonderful time to reflect on the people, events and experiences that have been most meaningful to you in the last year. During that lull between your family feast and the moment when you get hungry again for leftovers, take out your journal and put your pen to work!
Short, Sweet & Simple Gratitude Journaling
1. Reflect for a few minutes on the past year. What changes have you gone through since last Thanksgiving? What new developments have occurred? What has remained the same?
2. At the top of a fresh page in your journal, write, “This Thanksgiving, I give thanks for…” and start making a list with anything that comes to mind, no matter how small. For example:
This Thanksgiving, I give thanks for…
• My strength and health
• Library books
• New and old friendships
• A promising football season
• A job I love
3. Thanksgiving is a good opportunity to recognize and appreciate your blessings, but gratitude journaling can also play an important role in your everyday life. Brainstorm ways you can incorporate this mindset into your journal writing practice. For example:
• I can sometimes fixate on the negative or stressful aspects of my day and gloss over the positive. I’d like to try to reverse that pattern by writing one or two things I’m happy about or thankful for in my journal before I go to bed each night.
• I journal about the people in my life a lot, but I don’t always feel comfortable sharing my feelings with them. I will work on telling people what I value or appreciate about them (whether it’s through a letter or in person).
• I will make an effort to keep up my journal writing during good times as well as bad.
Happy Thanksgiving! What are you thankful for? Share something from your gratitude journaling list in the comments.
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