WEBVTT - No. 7: Gratitude in Practice + How It Can Change Your Life. 0:00:18.120 --> 0:00:25.320 Tell me I can't see okay, what's up, y'all? Welcome 0:00:25.360 --> 0:00:28.160 to Hand Me my Purse the podcast. I am me 0:00:28.320 --> 0:00:31.320 Me Walker, and I will be your forever host, each 0:00:31.360 --> 0:00:34.919 and every single time you tune into this podcast. So 0:00:35.040 --> 0:00:37.879 go ahead and get comfortable. Get yourself a glass of 0:00:37.920 --> 0:00:42.920 your favorite beverage, whether that's alkaline water, red kool aid, 0:00:43.440 --> 0:00:46.920 a hot cup of tea with honey, a glass of Cabernet, 0:00:47.000 --> 0:00:52.000 Sauvignon or Hennessy, and light yourself a candle, some incense 0:00:52.080 --> 0:00:54.800 or burn some sage and just get ready to chill 0:00:54.880 --> 0:01:08.640 out and have a good time. What's up, friends and ken, 0:01:08.640 --> 0:01:12.440 It's Mimi Resident Anti Supreme here at hand Me my Purse. 0:01:13.120 --> 0:01:16.760 And today I'm sipping on some deep Eddy Lemon vodka 0:01:16.920 --> 0:01:21.319 with bubbly pineapple Seltzer water. Why because you know what, 0:01:21.800 --> 0:01:23.880 the way this week has gone down in the United 0:01:23.920 --> 0:01:28.840 States of America for black folks, I deserve a drink, okay, 0:01:29.040 --> 0:01:31.440 And this is my first drink of the whole week. 0:01:32.360 --> 0:01:35.600 I haven't done any day drinking this week. I haven't 0:01:35.640 --> 0:01:39.800 had any liquor at all, actually, and I'm really proud 0:01:39.880 --> 0:01:46.840 of myself. So I'm feeling very detoxificated. Okay, I am 0:01:46.880 --> 0:01:48.240 so proud of that. I wish I had a T 0:01:48.320 --> 0:01:50.920 shirt that said Proud Mary, because I would be proud Mary. 0:01:51.080 --> 0:01:53.080 I can't even remember the last time I had a drink, 0:01:53.320 --> 0:01:56.080 and not that I'm an alcoholic, but you know, I 0:01:56.160 --> 0:01:58.120 like to have a drink every now and then, and 0:01:58.400 --> 0:02:00.720 I haven't had any. I didn't even have anything to 0:02:00.800 --> 0:02:03.800 drink last week when I watched Insecure, and I usually 0:02:03.800 --> 0:02:06.320 like to have a glass of wine or margarita when 0:02:06.320 --> 0:02:08.720 I watched that, and I didn't. So I'm very proud 0:02:08.720 --> 0:02:19.520 of myself. Thank you very much for this show's jam. 0:02:19.560 --> 0:02:22.840 I decided to choose a song that of course is 0:02:23.280 --> 0:02:27.760 centered around the theme for today's show as usual, and 0:02:27.880 --> 0:02:30.400 this song is a song that I would listen to 0:02:30.400 --> 0:02:33.640 on repeat in a really, really dark period of my 0:02:33.680 --> 0:02:36.280 life where you know, I was really depressed, I was lonely, 0:02:36.760 --> 0:02:40.959 I felt really isolated, and I just didn't know how 0:02:41.000 --> 0:02:43.679 I was coming out of it. Right at the time, 0:02:43.680 --> 0:02:47.280 I was not in therapy, so I had to resort 0:02:47.320 --> 0:02:50.640 to my own strategies or coping mechanisms. And for me, 0:02:51.800 --> 0:02:54.160 something that I always look to when I'm not feeling 0:02:54.160 --> 0:02:58.960 my best is music. So I would always use music 0:02:59.320 --> 0:03:02.600 and or art, but mostly music as a form of therapy. 0:03:03.200 --> 0:03:07.840 So this song is actually by Damian Marley and side note, 0:03:08.000 --> 0:03:14.800 I love Damian Marley and NAS. Side note number two, 0:03:15.360 --> 0:03:18.600 I love Nazia Jones and I don't know too many 0:03:18.639 --> 0:03:21.280 black women who don't love NAS. And if you do 0:03:21.320 --> 0:03:23.760 not like NAS, I don't really like we need to 0:03:23.760 --> 0:03:27.040 have a conversation because I don't really know how magic 0:03:27.120 --> 0:03:30.679 your black girl magic is. But anyway, I digress. I'm 0:03:30.720 --> 0:03:33.040 just kidding. You still her magical even if you don't 0:03:33.040 --> 0:03:35.920 like NAS. No, you're not just kidding, Okay, anyway, I'm sorry. 0:03:36.000 --> 0:03:40.640 So anyway, this song, I would listen to it. I 0:03:40.640 --> 0:03:43.720 created a playlist because like I was really damn and 0:03:43.760 --> 0:03:45.680 I said, I gotta get a grip on this. So 0:03:45.760 --> 0:03:48.120 I created a playlist and it was called Shower Power, 0:03:48.560 --> 0:03:50.360 and I would listen to it when I got up, 0:03:50.600 --> 0:03:52.440 when I got in the shower, and I would listen 0:03:52.480 --> 0:03:55.520 to it on my ride into work. And it had 0:03:55.600 --> 0:04:00.280 gospel songs, some inspirational songs, you know, just all the 0:04:00.320 --> 0:04:04.560 songs centered around like joy and happiness and peace and 0:04:05.040 --> 0:04:08.680 you know, paying attention to you know how blessed and 0:04:08.720 --> 0:04:11.400 how grateful you should be for the life that you 0:04:11.520 --> 0:04:15.880 do have. The first song on the playlist was Happy 0:04:15.920 --> 0:04:19.919 by Pharrell. Okay, and although that song kind of drives 0:04:19.960 --> 0:04:23.840 me crazy, it would always just put me in a 0:04:23.880 --> 0:04:27.239 good space. So I would start my day off listening 0:04:27.240 --> 0:04:30.800 to that song. And this song is actually called counter Blessings, 0:04:30.880 --> 0:04:35.599 and it's a phenomenal song. The lyrics alone will put 0:04:35.640 --> 0:04:40.800 you in a supreme place of gratitude. I have to 0:04:40.800 --> 0:04:44.000 say that my favorite, Like I love the lyrics of 0:04:44.040 --> 0:04:48.320 this song, but I think my favorite line of lyrics 0:04:48.320 --> 0:04:50.520 that would make me cry and I would cry sometimes 0:04:50.560 --> 0:04:52.960 when I would listen to it is when he would say, 0:04:53.600 --> 0:04:57.200 and give thanks to the Master that through all the disaster, 0:04:57.640 --> 0:05:01.240 we're still here together. After that, are count your blessings. 0:05:01.960 --> 0:05:05.760 And that is really what drove me to select this song, 0:05:05.800 --> 0:05:09.360 because it seems like we are in the middle of 0:05:10.200 --> 0:05:15.520 a severe shit storm right and when this is all over, 0:05:16.200 --> 0:05:20.320 we will be blessed enough to still be here and 0:05:20.360 --> 0:05:23.520 just give thanks to whoever your higher power is. But 0:05:23.920 --> 0:05:26.400 give thanks to God, give thanks to universe, give thanks 0:05:26.440 --> 0:05:29.400 to a head of cabbage, or give thanks to the sun. 0:05:29.520 --> 0:05:32.960 Whatever it is that you give thanks to Okay, I 0:05:33.000 --> 0:05:35.880 hope it's not yourself, but you know, hey, that's not 0:05:35.960 --> 0:05:38.159 for me to judge, but just to give thanks that 0:05:38.279 --> 0:05:42.640 through all of this disaster and all of this mess, 0:05:42.680 --> 0:05:44.960 that we are still here together. So let's count our 0:05:45.000 --> 0:05:47.760 blessings for that, when everything seems that it's down, we're 0:05:47.800 --> 0:05:50.440 still here and we're still together. I want you to 0:05:50.440 --> 0:05:52.440 get into this song. I'm going to play a snippet 0:05:52.480 --> 0:05:55.680 of it. The cover that I found is by a 0:05:55.760 --> 0:05:59.960 group or a band called the Lucitionaires. I really hope 0:06:00.080 --> 0:06:02.320 I'm saying that right. It seems like I say that 0:06:02.320 --> 0:06:04.600 almost every show, but I really hope I'm saying that right. 0:06:04.640 --> 0:06:08.560 So the Lucian Airs and they are covering Damian Marley 0:06:08.600 --> 0:06:11.400 and Naz's Count Your Blessings. But I want you to 0:06:11.440 --> 0:06:15.080 listen to and get into Damian Marley and Naz's version 0:06:15.080 --> 0:06:17.400 of the original version of this song. And I want 0:06:17.440 --> 0:06:18.719 you to listen to it, and I want you to 0:06:18.720 --> 0:06:20.920 get into it. And if you can't understand what he's saying, 0:06:21.680 --> 0:06:25.800 God have mercy, look up the lyrics and read them 0:06:25.800 --> 0:06:29.160 to yourself. But it's really a heartfelt song, and it's 0:06:29.160 --> 0:06:31.960 a song that just puts you in a really reflective place, 0:06:32.400 --> 0:06:35.760 in a place of gratitude, like don't ever forget. And 0:06:35.920 --> 0:06:39.960 it also reminds us to be grateful for things that 0:06:40.000 --> 0:06:42.280 we don't even think about. And it just touched me 0:06:42.320 --> 0:06:45.520 so much, because you know, I know what it's like 0:06:45.680 --> 0:06:47.599 to be in a place. There's a line where he says, 0:06:47.920 --> 0:06:50.960 I've got love and assurance. I've got new health insurance, 0:06:51.120 --> 0:06:53.799 and I've got strength and endurance. So I count my blessings. 0:06:54.240 --> 0:06:56.040 I know what it's like to not have health insurance 0:06:56.120 --> 0:06:58.840 and be sick. Let me tell you something. Just get 0:06:58.880 --> 0:07:01.320 into this song, okay, to touch you, let it annoint you, 0:07:01.440 --> 0:07:03.400 let it get into your spirit, and be grateful and 0:07:03.440 --> 0:07:10.560 be reflective and counter blessings. Let's get into the Songho runs. 0:07:10.960 --> 0:07:14.200 I've got new heather and shore runs. I've got strength 0:07:14.320 --> 0:07:18.600 on dr Runs. So I called my blessing and give 0:07:18.720 --> 0:07:23.320 thanks to the master that drew Wall the disaster. We're 0:07:23.400 --> 0:07:33.960 still here together after bets, I called your blessings, God, God. 0:07:38.280 --> 0:07:40.760 Now let's go ahead and get on into this show, 0:07:41.000 --> 0:07:50.600 shall we. So as I was thinking about my next topic, 0:07:50.840 --> 0:07:53.600 I got kind of stuck and I was talking to 0:07:53.680 --> 0:07:57.080 my cousin Randall, who is my eternal boo. It's one 0:07:57.120 --> 0:08:01.360 of my favorite people in the world. Hey, Random, I 0:08:01.440 --> 0:08:03.240 was talking to him about what I should do, and 0:08:03.280 --> 0:08:07.200 he said, what about a show focused on gratitude. You know, 0:08:08.120 --> 0:08:10.640 we're in a dark place and this will be good. Now. 0:08:10.760 --> 0:08:15.400 Keep in mind, this was before the George Floyd stuff 0:08:15.720 --> 0:08:20.600 all happened, right, And so I pondered that, and I 0:08:20.720 --> 0:08:24.520 thought about how and why, and we kind of agreed 0:08:24.600 --> 0:08:26.600 that this is kind of what the world needs right now. 0:08:27.240 --> 0:08:34.720 And then this week happened, and that was the straw 0:08:34.920 --> 0:08:38.959 that broke the camel's back yet again. This poor camel, Jesus, 0:08:39.040 --> 0:08:41.520 this camel's back has been broken so many times his 0:08:41.679 --> 0:08:44.880 spine has basically sawed us at this point, so of 0:08:44.880 --> 0:08:47.480 course we all know. At this point, you should know 0:08:47.960 --> 0:08:50.920 that another innocent black man was murdered on camera for 0:08:50.960 --> 0:08:54.640 the world to see by a police officer, a white 0:08:54.640 --> 0:08:58.840 police officer, and all hell has broken loose once more, 0:08:59.440 --> 0:09:04.680 yet again, and the saga continues. So at this point, 0:09:04.679 --> 0:09:08.160 I'm thinking, now I need to do a show about 0:09:08.240 --> 0:09:12.640 all of this. It's my obligation. I'm a black person, 0:09:12.800 --> 0:09:15.679 I'm a black woman. I got to do this and Now, 0:09:15.760 --> 0:09:19.000 keep in mind, I had already completed and prepped about 0:09:19.080 --> 0:09:23.520 eighty eighty to eighty five excuse me, percent of today's 0:09:23.559 --> 0:09:26.080 episode and decided in that very moment I had to 0:09:26.160 --> 0:09:30.280 change everything and do something else. And so I started 0:09:30.840 --> 0:09:33.439 prep work for a show. It was going to be 0:09:33.480 --> 0:09:35.800 called Fight the Power. So then I was like, how 0:09:35.840 --> 0:09:39.480 can I make this interesting and not just a show 0:09:39.480 --> 0:09:43.719 where I'm complaining about white people that are racist and 0:09:43.840 --> 0:09:47.000 white privilege in America and being angry and tired and 0:09:47.000 --> 0:09:49.719 fed up Because I don't really want that energy for 0:09:49.840 --> 0:09:53.160 my listeners, because that energy is just everywhere, like when 0:09:53.160 --> 0:09:55.360 you go outside you can kind of feel it. These 0:09:55.400 --> 0:09:58.800 things are given, like I don't really want that. And 0:09:58.880 --> 0:10:01.360 if you are not tired up and angry, baby, this 0:10:01.480 --> 0:10:04.600 ain't the show for you, click out, go listen to 0:10:04.640 --> 0:10:09.160 something else, because this ain't for you. Now, when I 0:10:09.200 --> 0:10:12.439 say that, I don't mean that this episode isn't for you. 0:10:12.679 --> 0:10:17.440 I'm just saying that, in general, the compassion that you 0:10:17.559 --> 0:10:20.600 need to have when innocent people are being killed by 0:10:20.840 --> 0:10:23.880 the so called leaders of their communities, like you should 0:10:23.880 --> 0:10:25.400 be fed up and tired of that. I don't care 0:10:25.440 --> 0:10:27.920 what you look like. So I talked to my big sister. 0:10:28.520 --> 0:10:29.800 By the way, if you don't know who she is, 0:10:29.840 --> 0:10:31.760 you need to do yourself a favor and find out. 0:10:31.920 --> 0:10:36.760 Her name is Angelica and she is also known as 0:10:37.040 --> 0:10:40.319 the Village Auntie to the rest of the world, and 0:10:40.400 --> 0:10:42.640 the world definitely knows who she is. You should check 0:10:42.640 --> 0:10:44.960 her out. And of course there's going to be a 0:10:44.960 --> 0:10:47.400 link to her Instagram page in my show notes. And 0:10:47.640 --> 0:10:50.240 if you know like I do, you will go find 0:10:50.280 --> 0:10:52.040 out who she is and what she does and what 0:10:52.120 --> 0:10:56.480 she's about, because she is the magic any who. We 0:10:56.480 --> 0:10:58.160 were talking and I told her I didn't know what 0:10:58.280 --> 0:11:00.880 to do, and she said, you know, you don't have 0:11:00.960 --> 0:11:02.960 to do a show about anything you don't want to do, 0:11:03.480 --> 0:11:08.720 And then she proceeded to say that and I quote, 0:11:09.520 --> 0:11:12.440 I would say, continue with what you were going to discuss, 0:11:12.679 --> 0:11:16.920 because gratitude is important, especially in moments like this, and 0:11:17.000 --> 0:11:19.480 as a black woman, you are not obligated to shift 0:11:19.559 --> 0:11:22.760 everything in your life because the world is burning. We 0:11:22.960 --> 0:11:26.000 carry enough. Do your show the way you need to. 0:11:26.720 --> 0:11:29.360 I think a show talking about gratitude in the midst 0:11:29.440 --> 0:11:32.480 of all of this could be a bomb. But whatever 0:11:32.559 --> 0:11:36.920 you decide, I support you. End quote. Let me just 0:11:36.960 --> 0:11:39.720 say that it is so good, in such a blessing, 0:11:39.800 --> 0:11:43.160 and I am so grateful. Come on gratitude. I'm so 0:11:43.240 --> 0:11:46.280 grateful to have people in my corner and people who 0:11:46.360 --> 0:11:50.520 love me, who actually know me at my core, and 0:11:50.960 --> 0:11:53.079 who can bring me back to who I really am 0:11:53.120 --> 0:11:55.280 when I'm trying to step outside of my true self 0:11:55.400 --> 0:11:58.240 and just be much. Because I'm gonna tell you sometimes 0:11:58.240 --> 0:12:00.520 I can be a bit dramatic and sometimes be much. 0:12:00.840 --> 0:12:02.960 She kind of just reeled me in, and it just 0:12:03.040 --> 0:12:05.960 reminded me to just be me. Just be me. I 0:12:05.960 --> 0:12:08.160 don't need to be anybody else. I don't need to 0:12:08.240 --> 0:12:11.480 feel obligated. I just need to be me. And I 0:12:11.520 --> 0:12:15.440 appreciate that, and I'm grateful, and in choosing to trust 0:12:15.480 --> 0:12:18.360 my gut and my big sis, I still feel like 0:12:18.400 --> 0:12:22.040 I have to say something. And I saw this quote 0:12:22.160 --> 0:12:25.080 on Twitter. You gotta love black Twitter. I saw this 0:12:25.200 --> 0:12:30.600 quote on Twitter by It says at Quinta Brunson or 0:12:30.720 --> 0:12:33.840 Quinta Brunson and the quote is in our quote or 0:12:33.840 --> 0:12:36.480 the tweet is excuse me in our quote. Being black 0:12:36.600 --> 0:12:38.960 is having a good day and then seeing another black 0:12:39.000 --> 0:12:41.560 person was killed for no reason. Then you have to 0:12:41.600 --> 0:12:45.000 think about and talk about that all day, or you 0:12:45.080 --> 0:12:48.000 don't and then you numb yourself. Either way, it's a 0:12:48.040 --> 0:12:53.440 constant emotional war that is a whole fact. As I said, 0:12:53.640 --> 0:12:56.520 I still want to just honor the spirit in the 0:12:56.600 --> 0:13:01.440 lives of George Floyd, Brianna Taylor, and a mod Areberry 0:13:01.600 --> 0:13:04.679 with a moment of silence, And during this moment, if 0:13:04.720 --> 0:13:08.040 you could just silently say their names, just sam to yourself, 0:13:08.080 --> 0:13:11.800 and just ask your higher power to protect their souls 0:13:11.880 --> 0:13:15.559 and to let those who have had their hands directly 0:13:15.679 --> 0:13:20.320 or indirectly in the pot of evil, blood and death 0:13:20.360 --> 0:13:22.959 that is responsible for them no longer being here on 0:13:22.960 --> 0:13:28.880 this earth, along with countless other innocent black people who 0:13:28.960 --> 0:13:32.000 have died at the hands of law enforcement. I want 0:13:32.040 --> 0:13:36.080 those people to feel the wrath, whatever wrath you choose 0:13:36.160 --> 0:13:39.720 to send their way, send it, okay, or just send 0:13:39.720 --> 0:13:41.440 it to your higher power and let them take care 0:13:41.480 --> 0:13:43.520 of it. That's just how I feel. Just you know, 0:13:43.640 --> 0:13:46.720 just send it, send it up, as DeAngelo said, send 0:13:46.760 --> 0:13:49.480 it up and send it through. So if you will 0:13:49.559 --> 0:14:17.000 please join me now for a moment of silence. Okay, 0:14:17.000 --> 0:14:22.760 thank you so much. Amen. I mean, I Shay, let's 0:14:22.800 --> 0:14:27.920 move on. I kind of feel like we need a 0:14:28.000 --> 0:14:31.000 chin check. And the way that I'm speaking of is 0:14:31.360 --> 0:14:34.760 basically the entire world. We need a reminder of just 0:14:34.840 --> 0:14:37.520 how blessed we are, because I can promise you that 0:14:37.600 --> 0:14:41.280 a lot of us forget on a daily basis just 0:14:41.400 --> 0:14:45.520 how good of a life we actually live, and we 0:14:45.640 --> 0:14:49.440 forget without even realizing that we have forgotten. Let's first 0:14:49.480 --> 0:14:52.920 start off by defining exactly what gratitude is. By definition, 0:14:53.000 --> 0:14:56.480 gratitude is a noun. It is the quality of being 0:14:56.560 --> 0:15:01.360 thankful and or readiness to show appreciation for and to 0:15:01.560 --> 0:15:06.560 return kindness. Also on former Vice President Al Gore's Internet, 0:15:06.600 --> 0:15:09.760 I found this explanation of what gratitude is. Gratitude is 0:15:09.800 --> 0:15:14.520 an emotion of thankfulness that may be experienced toward a person, animal, 0:15:14.720 --> 0:15:18.640 or deity. Gratitude can also describe a general feeling of 0:15:18.680 --> 0:15:22.320 thankfulness for life itself or for good aspects of life. 0:15:22.760 --> 0:15:25.880 Side note, whoever wrote this, let me tell you something. 0:15:26.600 --> 0:15:30.200 White people love animals, don't they. Jesus Christ Almighty knows 0:15:30.600 --> 0:15:32.800 they love an animal. Now, not to say Black people 0:15:32.800 --> 0:15:35.520 don't love animals, because some of y'all like y'all animals too, 0:15:35.560 --> 0:15:38.560 But if it came down to an animal or family member, 0:15:39.240 --> 0:15:42.160 not a family member. You don't like, man, that dog 0:15:42.240 --> 0:15:46.440 gonna be outside. They love animals. And since I've been home, 0:15:46.800 --> 0:15:48.680 I've been watching a lot of TV. I watch a 0:15:48.680 --> 0:15:52.840 lot of Ion television. Okay, I watch a lot of NCISLA, 0:15:53.040 --> 0:15:56.440 and I watch a lot of Freaking Chicago PD and 0:15:56.520 --> 0:15:59.600 they have those commercials and it's not the Sarah McLaughlin ones. 0:16:00.000 --> 0:16:03.200 This is a whole different as PCA commercial. And I 0:16:03.320 --> 0:16:06.800 just be like, damn, they love these damn animals. Anyway, 0:16:07.240 --> 0:16:12.840 I digress. So for me, in practice, I see gratitude 0:16:12.840 --> 0:16:15.320 as a verb. So you know, by definition it as 0:16:15.320 --> 0:16:18.480 a noun, but in practice, gratitude is a verb. It's 0:16:18.520 --> 0:16:21.440 an action word. I feel the emotion and the feeling 0:16:21.520 --> 0:16:25.040 of gratitude, but where when excuse me, there it's gratitude. 0:16:25.040 --> 0:16:27.800 In practice, I'm showing up and I'm displaying the effects 0:16:27.840 --> 0:16:31.200 of those emotions and or feelings. And it seems that 0:16:31.200 --> 0:16:34.320 there has been an insurgence over the past maybe five 0:16:34.400 --> 0:16:38.720 to seven years or so, just focusing on gratitude as 0:16:38.760 --> 0:16:41.000 a trend. But this is a good trend, and it's 0:16:41.200 --> 0:16:43.400 a trend. I think that it's healing for the world, 0:16:44.080 --> 0:16:46.440 and I want you to just stop for a second 0:16:46.480 --> 0:16:48.320 and just think about the miserable people you know. And 0:16:48.400 --> 0:16:50.600 we all know miserable people, so don't front neck like 0:16:50.920 --> 0:16:53.240 I don't know any miserable people. No, you do. And 0:16:53.280 --> 0:16:56.680 if you don't know anything, it might be usas or bro, 0:16:57.680 --> 0:17:00.880 it might be you. But think about it, get one 0:17:00.920 --> 0:17:02.800 in your mind. Just somebody. It could be a co worker, 0:17:02.800 --> 0:17:04.440 It could be a family member, it could be a friend, 0:17:04.440 --> 0:17:07.479 it could be anybody. But making somebody you know at 0:17:07.560 --> 0:17:12.880 least fairly well, do they practice gratitude in any way, 0:17:12.920 --> 0:17:15.479 shape or form. Do they live a life of thanks 0:17:15.560 --> 0:17:19.680 and of gratefulness? More than likely no, And that could 0:17:19.680 --> 0:17:24.600 be contributing to their misery. How about that? People don't 0:17:24.640 --> 0:17:28.080 think about things like that, which is very interesting to me, 0:17:28.800 --> 0:17:32.000 And it seems like for me the world kind of 0:17:32.119 --> 0:17:34.959 lacks gratitude and has a sense of or a spirit 0:17:34.960 --> 0:17:38.040 of entitlement. And part of me believes that that is 0:17:38.080 --> 0:17:43.199 because some people see or may see gratitude as a 0:17:43.200 --> 0:17:47.760 form of vulnerability or expressing gratitude as a form of vulnerability. 0:17:47.920 --> 0:17:54.160 But gratitude and expressing gratitude does not always have to 0:17:54.240 --> 0:17:56.480 be about the other person. You don't have to always 0:17:56.480 --> 0:17:58.840 look at it like that. It can very well be 0:17:58.880 --> 0:18:02.800 about you. And the reason that I say that is 0:18:02.880 --> 0:18:08.320 because you benefit. You can benefit by having a grateful 0:18:08.359 --> 0:18:12.080 spirit and expressing gratitude. We're gonna get to that later, 0:18:12.119 --> 0:18:14.400 but I just want you to keep that in your mind, 0:18:14.440 --> 0:18:18.480 like file that away for now. But expressing gratitude and 0:18:18.520 --> 0:18:22.000 being grateful and being thankful. Of course, it is about 0:18:22.200 --> 0:18:26.840 sharing your feelings of gratitude and thankfulness with others and 0:18:27.359 --> 0:18:30.320 with other entities and deities and animals and people, as 0:18:30.359 --> 0:18:33.720 they said in the definition, but it really can be 0:18:33.760 --> 0:18:36.320 about your spirit. So just file that away and we'll 0:18:36.359 --> 0:18:38.639 get back to that a little later. I want to 0:18:38.680 --> 0:18:43.840 thank me. I want to thank me for believing in me. 0:18:44.960 --> 0:18:47.280 I want to thank me for doing all this hard work. 0:18:48.359 --> 0:18:50.760 I want to thank me for having no days off. 0:18:51.960 --> 0:18:55.720 I want to thank me for never quitting. I want 0:18:55.720 --> 0:18:58.399 to thank me for always being a giver and trying 0:18:58.400 --> 0:19:00.240 to give more than I receive. I want to thank 0:19:00.320 --> 0:19:02.520 me for trying to do more right than wrong. I 0:19:02.560 --> 0:19:06.800 want to thank me for just being me at all times. Now, listen, 0:19:06.960 --> 0:19:09.480 take a pause for the cause, and thank Uncle Calvin 0:19:09.560 --> 0:19:16.920 aka Snoop Dog for just teaching us a lesson right there. Now. 0:19:16.960 --> 0:19:21.439 When I think of times where I have lacked gratitude 0:19:21.480 --> 0:19:24.080 the most in my life, it was probably as a teenager. 0:19:24.280 --> 0:19:27.199 And you know, I have said many times that I 0:19:27.240 --> 0:19:31.040 work with teenagers. I work at a school grade six 0:19:31.119 --> 0:19:36.280 through twelve, and teenagers are some of the most self absorbed, 0:19:36.320 --> 0:19:38.400 selfish people that I have ever met in my life. 0:19:38.440 --> 0:19:41.240 They're very ungrateful. And my parents is always tell me 0:19:41.880 --> 0:19:43.600 that I was ungrateful, and I'd be like, what are 0:19:43.600 --> 0:19:46.159 they talking about? But the truth of the matter is 0:19:46.200 --> 0:19:49.320 that they were probably right. Now that I'm older and 0:19:49.400 --> 0:19:51.919 I work with kids like kids are ridiculous, So I 0:19:52.040 --> 0:19:55.919 was probably ungrateful just on gp because that's just what 0:19:56.040 --> 0:19:59.000 teenagers do. And that is the time in my life 0:19:59.040 --> 0:20:01.480 where I think that I is the most ungrateful. That's 0:20:01.520 --> 0:20:04.040 the time that sticks out to me the most. But 0:20:04.119 --> 0:20:07.080 I'm sure that there are lots of instances where I 0:20:07.160 --> 0:20:09.800 have not shown gratitude in my life because I'm a 0:20:09.880 --> 0:20:13.199 human being and I am definitely not perfect. However, I 0:20:13.240 --> 0:20:18.600 do try to live a life wherein I am in 0:20:18.640 --> 0:20:21.600 a state of gratefulness or a state of gratitude when 0:20:21.680 --> 0:20:23.919 I think about it, like, I try to really be 0:20:24.040 --> 0:20:26.760 that way, because I truly understand that. Honey, I got 0:20:26.880 --> 0:20:29.760 a testimony. Do you understand me? And I understand that 0:20:29.840 --> 0:20:33.480 I truly don't. I don't even know if I deserve, 0:20:33.560 --> 0:20:36.000 but I understand that my life does not and did 0:20:36.040 --> 0:20:38.639 not have to be what it is. God is good, 0:20:38.840 --> 0:20:42.440 okay all the time and all the time. I'm listening, 0:20:44.440 --> 0:20:47.360 And you know what, if you didn't say the rest 0:20:47.359 --> 0:20:49.480 of that phrase with me, then I question who you 0:20:49.520 --> 0:20:51.879 are as a human, as a human being, as a 0:20:51.880 --> 0:20:56.920 black human, especially filled with joy, enlightenment and eternalized sunshine. 0:20:57.320 --> 0:21:01.240 Because we know that that phrase, it's a staple in 0:21:01.280 --> 0:21:03.320 the you know what. Never mind, I don't have time 0:21:03.359 --> 0:21:06.640 for that. I'm not doing that. Shall I proceed? Yes? Indeed, 0:21:07.640 --> 0:21:13.040 you know, I believe that expressing gratitude is cathartic. And 0:21:13.160 --> 0:21:15.679 just think about how you feel when you sit still 0:21:16.240 --> 0:21:18.800 and you just think about how blessed you are. If 0:21:18.840 --> 0:21:21.480 you grew up in church, especially in a black church, 0:21:22.119 --> 0:21:26.080 think about how you feel when the pastors or the 0:21:26.119 --> 0:21:29.159 preachers start talking about how God has blessed you. And 0:21:29.240 --> 0:21:31.200 maybe you don't have to have grown up in church, 0:21:31.600 --> 0:21:35.800 but if you just sit still and think about how 0:21:35.960 --> 0:21:38.720 blessed or some people call it luck or fate or 0:21:38.720 --> 0:21:43.080 whatever it is. How whatever that is, you are, you 0:21:43.119 --> 0:21:45.920 should start to feel light and even feel a sense 0:21:45.920 --> 0:21:52.280 of freedom. Gratitude also helps us with our mental health. 0:21:52.320 --> 0:21:54.280 It also helps to aid our mental health in a 0:21:54.320 --> 0:21:59.199 positive way. So people who frequently feel and expressed gratitude 0:21:59.240 --> 0:22:02.000 tend to be happy than other people. And that's what 0:22:02.080 --> 0:22:06.440 I meant by freeing yourself up. It frees some energy 0:22:06.520 --> 0:22:09.639 up in your spirit, and even if their life circumstances 0:22:09.680 --> 0:22:13.920 are objectively more challenging, they tend to be happier. That 0:22:14.000 --> 0:22:17.520 lends proof to the concept that rich people can have 0:22:17.560 --> 0:22:19.880 all the money in the world and still be miserable 0:22:20.000 --> 0:22:23.119 and unhappy. But you could go to the projects and 0:22:23.720 --> 0:22:25.439 you can see some of the happiest people you've ever 0:22:25.480 --> 0:22:27.399 seen in your life. They are having a good time. 0:22:28.000 --> 0:22:31.480 You know, they're laughing, They're in a state of joy 0:22:31.520 --> 0:22:34.000 and elation. And you want to know why. It's because 0:22:34.040 --> 0:22:37.360 more often than rich people, poor people are truly grateful 0:22:37.720 --> 0:22:42.160 for what they do have, and without even trying, they're grateful. 0:22:42.560 --> 0:22:46.879 And that's usually because you know, oftentimes they're in survival 0:22:46.880 --> 0:22:49.080 mode or the world makes them feel like they're in 0:22:49.119 --> 0:22:51.560 a state of lack, so what they have they tend 0:22:51.600 --> 0:22:54.359 to cherish. I know a lot of the poor people 0:22:54.359 --> 0:22:57.600 that I know or shoot, when my ass was poor, 0:22:58.119 --> 0:23:00.440 I was so grateful for anything. You can give me 0:23:00.480 --> 0:23:02.520 some cup of noodles and I'm going to be very happy. 0:23:02.680 --> 0:23:04.240 I talk about a couple of noodles a lot on 0:23:04.240 --> 0:23:06.000 this show, and I don't know why, because, like I said, 0:23:06.000 --> 0:23:08.560 I don't eat no cup of noodles. I eat ramen 0:23:08.640 --> 0:23:11.320 out of the pack, and it is fancy ramen out 0:23:11.320 --> 0:23:12.679 of the pack. I don't even know what's in it 0:23:12.680 --> 0:23:17.919 because it's not even in English. Anyway, I digress as usual. 0:23:19.359 --> 0:23:23.600 You know. To get the full benefits of gratitude, we 0:23:23.720 --> 0:23:27.280 have to incorporate it in our daily existence. We need 0:23:27.320 --> 0:23:31.359 to practice it consistently, and we must be intentional about 0:23:31.400 --> 0:23:33.600 the practice of gratitude. So that means that we have 0:23:33.600 --> 0:23:35.399 to figure out a way to carve out time in 0:23:35.440 --> 0:23:39.560 our busy schedule to express gratitude and to feel that 0:23:39.760 --> 0:23:44.440 energy and that emotion of gratitude. Even if we're busy. 0:23:44.640 --> 0:23:46.840 You should never be too busy to say a simple 0:23:46.880 --> 0:23:49.440 thank you to somebody, even if that's all you say 0:23:50.119 --> 0:23:53.119 is thank you out loud to someone else, or just 0:23:53.200 --> 0:23:56.399 say it when you're by yourself, because somebody, something, some 0:23:56.680 --> 0:24:00.640 entity the universe will feel the energy, will hear it. 0:24:01.080 --> 0:24:03.280 And I know we're all busy, but we gotta find 0:24:03.280 --> 0:24:06.280 the time because remember what Snoop Dog taught us. You 0:24:06.359 --> 0:24:10.760 know it's about us, right And it doesn't have to 0:24:10.800 --> 0:24:13.240 be a grandiose form of expression. It could be in 0:24:13.280 --> 0:24:15.160