Truth time… I used to despise November.

I saw it as such an unremarkable month. It didn’t have the fun playfulness of Halloween or the magic and wonder of the holidays. Outside the windows, the trees were bare, the days were short and the weather started plummeting but not cold enough for any real spectacular snowstorm. It just felt blah.

But, I have come to truly and honestly love this month. And one reason for that is the amazing gratitude this month espouses.

Join me as we celebrate the gratitude that November brings.

Definitions of Joy

Before we dive into the joy that November’s gratitude brings, I want to start with why we are even talking about gratitude and November and joy.

My favorite joy encyclopedia and dictionary and all-the-things is called The Book of Joy (so fitting!). This book is the catalyst for this site, for my own life and is deeply beloved for so many reasons.

One of which is it is written by men who are certainly qualified to discuss the topic of joy-His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

Along with Douglas Abrams, this book takes you through the elusive emotion of joy and what makes it tick.

In one part of the book, the authors dive into some of the research behind the feeling joy. And they discover that joy isn’t one emotion at all. It’s made up of a bunch of different emotions–with joy being the umbrella.

Some of the emotions that fall under the term of joy are: spiritual radiance, amusement, elevation, bliss, relief… and gratitude.

Before my reset break, I started to tackle one of these feelings each month and discussed ways we can honor, practice and celebrate that feeling that month. Now, that I am back-I want to continue on with this… and decided November just had to celebrate the feeling of gratitude.

What’s Gratitude, Really?

We hear the word all. the. time.

In fact, it tends to get thrown around a lot, especially in November.

But, let’s take a step back to really get a grasp on what this word really means.

To start let’s look specifically at gratitude’s counterpart-grateful. The word can be broken down into the Old English word “grate” and the the suffix “-ful”. With “grate” meaning pleasant/agreeable and “-ful” signifying basically full-of- this word broken down into its parts means full of pleasantness.

Look up the word “grateful” in the dictionary and you get similar definitions of, “warmly or deeply appreciative of kindness or benefits received“, “pleasing to the mind or senses” and “ affording pleasure or contentment“.

In her book, Atlas of the Heart, Brené Brown tackles the impressive quest of figuring out a map to our heart and emotions. She includes the feeling of gratitude in her chapter entitled: Places We Go When Life Is Good. Listed amongst feelings like joy, relief, calm, tranquility, foreboding joy, and contentment, she dives into the feeling of gratitude.

Brown writes,

“There are about as many definitions of gratitude as there are researchers, poets, and writers who examine the emotion in their work. […] Here’s what’s emerged from our work: Gratitude is an emotion that reflects our deep appreciation for what we value, what brings meaning to our lives, and what makes us feel connected to ourselves and others.” -Brené Brown, Atlas of the Heart

So, what’s gratitude?

Perhaps, in the end, it is simply a different way of realizing what is truly important to us.

Why Focus on Gratitude This November?

With the U.S. holiday of Thanksgiving, it is easy to see why so many people in the United States tend to focus heavily on the feeling of gratitude during the month of November.

But, what about for people who may not be celebrating November’s Thanksgiving?

Whether it be the Northern Hemisphere or the Southern Hemisphere, November is a transition month.

For the Northern Hemisphere, we watch as the vibrant beauty of fall starts its final movements towards winter while in the Southern parts of the world the gentle days of spring are starting their shifts towards the glorious days of summer.

November means change.

For me, up here in the Northern Hemisphere, November marks a month that at surface level doesn’t have quite the same beauty as its predecessor October does.

Gone are the days when you look out the window and see a mixture of reds, oranges and yellows. Instead what greets you now is brown leaves and Noah Kahan’s appropriately named “stick season”. Sunlight is dramatically different from what it was just a couple months ago and the weather has certainly started to shift towards winter.

Look deeper, and you certainly can find beauty in the surroundings of November… and gratitude helps with that.

When you are feeling the shorter days, when you want to go outside without needing to bundle up, when you are feeling the tides of change around and want stability… look towards gratitude.

Gratitude will change your perspective. For, after all, as Brent Brown says in Atlas of the Heart, gratitude is about, “celebrating goodness.”

Ways to Practice Some Gratitude

In Atlas of the Heart, Brené Brown says that a key part of gratitude is it is a PRACTICE. It needs to be practiced, not just a one-time thing. Consistency is what will yield gratitude’s transformation. Check out these ideas for some ways to practice gratitude this November (or any other month in the year!).

1.) Learn About the Research Behind Gratitude: Why am I and so many other people just in love with gratitude? Well, speaking for myself, I just noticed such profound changes in my life when I started a regular practice with it. Interestingly enough, there is plentiful research behind why this might be. According to UCLA Health, gratitude practice has been linked to reduced depression, less anxiety, stress relief, improved sleep and better supported heart health. Do your own research and marvel in what the research is showing when it comes to gratitude. This is a great place to start. Maybe it will persuade you more to take up a gratitude practice of your own!

2.) Practice a Gratitude Meditation: Consider adding a gratitude meditation to your meditation routine. One of my favorites: Dr. Joe Dispenza’s Generating Gratitude Meditation!

3.) Read and Try Out the Exercises in The Magic: This is my #1 gratitude book for a reason… it literally gives you a whole month’s worth of gratitude practices to try. With each building upon the next, you end the month with a whole new sense of gratitude and what a consistent practice feels like. If you are interested in learning more about this book, I highlighted it as my November pick for the Joyfilled Book Club.

4.) Take a Gratitude Walk: If you want a more movement-driven gratitude practice, consider taking a gratitude walk. Imagine the difference you would feel if you spent thirty minutes outside in nature appreciating!

5.) Gratitude Lists: When you imagine gratitude, gratitude lists probably come to the forefront. They are a great, simple, and quick way to practice gratitude after all! My favorite gratitude list practice comes from the aforementioned The Magic book. The exercise has you write out 10 things you are grateful for in the following format: “I am so grateful for ________ because _________.” The addition of the word
“because” is a powerful one that makes you really lean more into why you are grateful for the things you are!

6.) Listen to a Gratitude Playlist (or Create One!): I created this playlist with songs about gratitude. I love to listen to it when I write out my gratitude list or when I just need a little gratitude pick-me-up. Consider listening to it, another playlist, or make your own playlist.

6.) Write a Thank-You: One of my favorite children’s books is The Thank You Letter by Jane Cabrera- I even highlighted it as a book to read with a child in your life in my post on cozy autumn children’s reads. In the book, the little girl starts writing thank-you notes for her birthday gifts… and this morphs into her writing thank-you notes for everything and everyone. While it’s a fun concept, the book serves as a reminder that maybe we can write more thank-you notes and not just for physical gifts we have been given. Consider writing a thank-you note to a favorite teacher who changed your life. Try writing a thank-you note to a family member who was there for you during a challenging time. Perhaps write a thank-you note to your postman for always taking good care of your mail each day. Maybe in addition to more love-what the world needs more is more thank-you notes.

Comment Below: What’s one thing you are grateful for today?