Giving Thanks ~ Giving Blessings

Recently a client shared with me how nervous she was about an upcoming meeting.  The meeting was very important to her and the more she talked about it, the more anxious she became.  It was clear that she was focusing only on how important this meeting was to her.  She was tuned completely into what she wanted to get out of the meeting.


I asked her, “What do you want to bring to the meeting?  What of yourself do you want to give to the person you are meeting?”   


In considering these questions, she shifted her focus from what she wanted to receive to what she wanted to give.  In making this shift, she found her sense of ease and balance restored.  By the end of our time together, she was laughing and looking forward to the meeting with joyous anticipation.  She was looking forward to going into a meeting being consciously aware of thankfulness for what she was about to receive and joyfulness for what she was going to give.

Achieving the balance of “Thanks-Giving” is far easier when we bring to our conscious awareness, “what do I want to give in this situation and what do I want to receive in this situation?”  Focusing solely on giving or solely on receiving can leave us feeling off balance and out of sorts.   


Particularly in this time of giving and receiving, staying in balance and doing anything we can to promote a greater sense of ease is welcome.  What if we could infuse our gifts with our good wishes for others simply by bringing our awareness to what we truly want to give the person for whom we are wrapping a gift or shopping.


What if we let our heart offer blessings of peace or blessings of joy as we went about our daily activities?  What if we infused our day with giving blessings?  For instance, with the mother whose son has passed away, “May your heart know peace.”  To the harried shopper you’ve just come across, you might offer the blessing, “May you breathe easy, knowing all is well.”


What if we all played with offering silent blessings to each other?  Might together we create a wonder-filled holiday season; a season of magical giving and receiving?  Take it a step further and consider the upcoming gatherings or meetings in your life ask yourself the simple questions:

What do I want to give?
What do I want to receive?

In the answering of these questions, give yourself permission to consider what inner state or quality you want to bring to the meetings or gatherings you are approaching.  Notice how stating what you want to give and receive affects your experience.  Notice how offering blessings to others affects your experiences.

May your holiday season be filled with love, joy and peace.



  1. (c)2006  Melanie McGhee                                                                                                             Originally published in EVA Magazine, Knoxville, TN