Gratitude is good for your health. No matter what’s happening around you, focusing on what you’re thankful for in this moment can keep you from getting anxious about the past or future.
“Gratitude” is the theme of this year’s free Spirit & Place conversation from 4 to 6 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 10, at Visionloft Events at the Stutz. Seating is limited, so RSVP.
Hear from Dacher Keltner, founder of the Greater Good Science Center and the author of “Awe: The Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life.” Keltner said that after his brother died of colon cancer, his research into awe helped him find meaning.
“I started listening to new music, spent time in the mountains, talked to ministers, spiritual leaders, artists,” he told Psychology Today. “I started to visit cemeteries, contemplating how awe brings meaning and sacredness into our individual lives.”
Ebony Chappel, Free Press Indiana’s market director, will join Keltner. Chappel, a multimedia journalist, business owner and community leader, hosted The Testimony Service: Gratitude Tea on Nov. 6, as part of Spirit & Place.
The conversation will be moderated by R. Eric Thomas, best-selling author of “Here for It, or How to Save Your Soul in America” and “Congratulations, The Best Is Over!” Thomas writes the Asking Eric advice column for the Washington Post.
In a recent column, a reader who was struggling with a chronic illness and the deaths of two brothers asked how to handle friends who complained about minor things.
Thomas wrote: “Bitterness steals crumbs of your gratitude and awe. So, use the bitter feeling as an alarm: Alert! This person isn’t in the same place I am. Use it as permission to tune them out and refocus on yourself, your journey and the parts of your life that connect you to meaning, wonder and gratitude.”
There’s also an art to gratitude — literally. Indianapolis-based artist and farmer Shamira Wilson will debut a new painting celebrating the theme at the event.
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