Gratitude is a wonderful thing. And besides being a beautiful state of mind, it has beneficial effects on our mental and emotional health as well as our physical health. Lately I find that the more I give thanks and appreciation for life, the more there is reason to give thanks and appreciation. Isn't that cool?
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There are many benefits of gratitude to our mental and emotional health like reducing stress and anxiety. By shifting our focus away from worry and scarcity to appreciation and abundance, our nervous system naturally calms.
And as we experience more gratitude, our physical health improves like better sleep, lowering our blood pressure, and reducing markers of inflammation.
Being grateful also strengthens our immune system, shown by reduced levels of cortisol, increasing heart rate variability (HRV), a sign of better stress resilience and reducing systemic inflammation, which is linked to a wide range of chronic illnesses.
So the big question is, "How do we experience more gratitude?" There are many practices and techniques, like writing down three things you're grateful for. But what we share with people about being grateful is that it isn't something we do. Rather it's a way of being.
And being grateful doesn't take effort because gratitude is part of our essential nature, just like Love, Joy and Peace. So, rather than doing something to experience gratitude, we simply need to stop doing what distracts us from our essential nature. And the easiest way to do that is to get present in the moment.
When we get present, it's like taking a holiday. Ever notice how much we enjoy things when we're on holiday? How does that happen? Do we tell ourselves to enjoy more, or does it happen as a result of taking a holiday in our minds from our distractive thinking? A holiday from worrying about work or the family or deadlines we have to meet. Does it seem like when you stop worrying, you feel more gratitude?
When we give ourselves permission to not focus on our anxiety and worries, we're left with the present moment and there the problems don't exist. Being in the present moment is being with our essential nature, so we naturally feel more love and gratitude. We don't need to try to feel more love and gratitude because we're experiencing our true nature, which is love and gratitude.
Next time you're on a holiday feeling good, or even feeling good thinking about a holiday, see if gratitude doesn't show up on its own. No doing or will power needed. That's because it's our essential nature. And that nature, that experience, is available in every moment. Is that good news or what?
Ultimately, all the benefits of gratitude: mental, emotional, physical and a peaceful state of mind, come with being grateful. We don't need to practice or try to remember to be grateful because it is our nature. In the present moment, we're left with our true self, experiencing gratitude and thriving in this life.
We have two recipes for you this week. Black Bean Burgers and a No Cheese Sauce. These are the best burgers we've come up with yet, and paired with the cheese sauce, they give us a whole new experience.
To Your Health,
Connie and Bill
Black Bean Burgers (makes 6-8 burgers)
- 1-15 ounce can of black beans, drained (and rinsed if not salt-free) or 1½ cups cooked
- 1 cup rolled oats
- 1 medium tomato
- 1 medium onion, large dice
- 3 cloves garlic, sliced
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon No Salt Seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon red chili flakes, like Mrs. Dash Extra Spicy
- ¼ teaspoon Chipotle chili powder
- Optional: ¼ cup sun-dried tomatoes (soaked in hot water if really dry)
Add everything to a food processor, the beans, oats, tomato, onion, garlic, black pepper, chili flakes, paprika, chipotle and sun-dried tomatoes (if using them).
Pulse until well mixed. It can be chunky or smooth. I like to still have chunks of beans in the mix. The smoother it is, the smoother and denser the burger.
To make the burgers, fill a 1/3 cup measuring cup with batter, plop it in the pan or on the silicone mat if baking, and press lightly into rounds with the back of the cup and a spoon.
Cooking them.
Baking method:
Bake at 350º for 25 minutes. Remove and place on rack to cool.
Fry Pan method:
In a non-stick pan on medium heat make 4 burgers. Cook 4-5 minutes until nice and brown on bottom. Turn and cook another 4-5 minutes. Repeat with remaining batter.
No Cheese Sauce Adapted from Forks Over Knives
- 1 large onion, chopped large
- 2 large red bell peppers or an equal amount of roasted red pepper, coarsely chopped
- 1/4 cup cashews
- 1 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 tablespoon tahini
- 1 tablespoon No Salt Seasoning
Combine all the ingredients in a high-speed blender and blend until smooth, about 60 seconds.
NOTE: Great on Buddha Bowls, steamed greens, steamed veggies, potatoes or nachos.