Over the past decade, modern research has confirmed a truth that religions and philosophies have stated for centuries: gratitude is good for people.

Victoria Flanagan is a licensed marriage and family therapist in Hendersonville who has studied gratitude professionally and practiced gratitude personally. “The most surprising information I have found is in the health benefits from practicing gratitude and mindfulness,” she said. These include “decreased blood pressure; acting with more generosity, optimism, and joy; and decreased anxiety.”
Much of the scientific research about the psychological and physical benefits of gratitude can be traced to Dr. Robert Emmons, a psychology professor at the University of California at Davis who has written multiple books on gratitude and has established a laboratory dedicated to its scientific study. The Emmons Lab has documented that people who intentionally practice gratitude report feeling 25 percent happier, exercise 33 percent more each week and sleep a half hour more each night than those who don't.
In addition to measuring benefits, Emmons has also studied what types of activities best foster gratitude. His latest book, “Gratitude Works,” outlines researched-based practices that have helped thousands of people develop a quantifiably more grateful disposition.
One of the most well known of these is the practice of keeping a gratitude journal, which Oprah Winfrey helped spotlight during the 1990s when she first spoke about the benefits she experienced through journaling. In a variation on the journaling theme, many Facebook users now spend the month of November writing a daily gratitude post, publicly sharing a particular item they are grateful for each day.
Other practices recommended by Emmons include writing letters, making personal visits, and following spiritual disciplines and rituals such as fasting and solitude.
Deliberate practices are necessary, Emmons explains in his book, because “our minds do have a built-in tendency to perceive an input as negative. … What we notice and pay attention to more often than not will drift to what is going wrong rather than what is going right.”
His research shows that while practicing gratitude is easier said than done, even people who do not have a naturally grateful disposition can change their mindset for the better.

In the Hendersonville community, people practice gratitude in myriad ways. Tim Jones, chief operations manager at the Hendersonville Rescue Mission, says his personal practice is to deliberately verbalize what he's grateful for.

“We talk a lot about gratitude with our guests here,” he said, referring to the homeless and disadvantaged who seek help at the Mission. “I've found that when someone gets to a point of gratitude in their journey, it completes the circle and I know they're going to be OK. When they want to give back, I know they'll make it. Gratitude takes you from the negative to having the courage to give back.”
Jones draws on his own life experience of articulating gratitude even in difficult situations.
“My father was a single dad on disability income,” he explained. “I grew up without a lot of money. Well, I grew up poor, really, and my father had every reason to be bitter and hard, yet he had a tender heart. If you talked to him, you'd think he was the most blessed person on Earth.”
Hiking in solitude is another useful gratitude practice for Jones, who also serves as a deacon at St. James Episcopal Church. “Hiking is my reflective time and puts my head back on straight. In creation, there is a sense of exuberance — an exuberant love of God. Part of my faith has to be an expression of gratitude.”
Dr. Teri Nadler, a naturopathic physician, sees gratitude as a fundamental aspect of faith as well. In fact, this fall she led a class on gratitude in Judaism at her synagogue, Agudas Israel.
“Gratitude is part of our code of ethics,” she said. “Tikkun Olam is something we practice. It means healing the world. We feel that with everything we've been through — persecution in Egypt, the Inquisition, the Holocaust — that's our job. That's why we have Mitzvah Day when we help agencies throughout the community. We're grateful to still be here. Healing the world comes from a state of gratitude.”
Like Jones, Nadler finds gratitude empowering.
“When you feel grateful, you see endless possibility. You have courage. Nothing stands in your way,” she said.
For Flanagan, the practice of yoga and mindfulness are important keys to maintaining a grateful mindset. “It takes being mindful of your surroundings, being aware, just paying attention,” she said. “Yoga is a way to start this journey. I can say that for myself, yoga gets me out of my head. I have been practicing for many years, and the more time I spend on the mat, the better I feel.”

In “Gratitude Works,” Emmons writes that “gratitude is a universal religious sentiment” and that “every culture has special rituals and traditions for expressing thanksgiving.”
Each fall, schoolchildren throughout Western North Carolina experience this concept firsthand through the Seasons of Gratitude Road Show presented by the Center for Diversity Education at UNC Asheville.
In addition to exploring historical aspects of the American Thanksgiving, Seasons of Gratitude focuses on similar celebrations such as the Hindu rice harvest festival of Pongal and the Cherokee Green Corn Festival.
The show uses vibrant cultural artifacts and foods to show global connectedness. During Pongol, for example, sweetened and spiced rice is cooked in a pot until it boils over, creating an image strikingly similar to the overflowing cornucopia showing abundance at Thanksgiving.
“Gratitude is definitely universal,” noted Deborah Miles, executive director for the center. “It's in our DNA.”