I was working today, doing some distant Reiki for a client. My room was a lovely haven of peace, quiet and beautiful music, and I was really enjoying what I was doing. Then suddenly, a dog started to bark at the back of the house. It kept on barking and wouldn't stop. My first instinct was to be annoyed with it and with the owners who keep the dog outside all day and night so that it has to bark to be noticed. The noise it was making was spoiling my peace and I was not happy! However, I had no choice but to continue my work, and as I stood there, I began to think about how we're told that we should show gratitude for everything in our lives and how the act of showing gratitude will bring us even more things to be grateful for.

 But how, I thought, can you show or feel gratitude for something that annoys or upsets you? Or what if you're suffering from something worse? What if you've had a breakdown in your health, relationships, or finances etc.? What if your world is falling down around you? How on earth are we supposed to show gratitude in those situations? Well, according to Abraham-Hicks, everything that is wrong in our lives is simply the launching pad for another 'rocket of desire'. And those 'rockets' of desire' then open the way for good things to come to us. After all, we can't have what we want if we don't know what we want… The problems we're facing at the moment are nothing more than a 'contrast' to show us what we wish to have, which would solve our problem and make our lives better. And it is only by having these 'problems' that we can then decide what it is that we want, and once we've decided, we can then begin to attract those things into our lives.

 So give it a try. Next time you're looking round at your life and thinking to yourself "I didn't want to create this" or "I don't want this in my life," try looking for the opposite. Think about what you need or what you need to have happen, to solve your problem. What's the contrasting thing that would make the difference? Now imagine, just for a moment, that you could be, do and have anything you wanted in your life. How would you solve your problem? Next, take a few minutes to sit and imagine your wish being fulfilled. How will your life look when it is? Isn't that much better? Make a mental image of your desire and think of it often. You don't have to believe you already have it, just that it's now on its way to you. And try and feel some gratitude for the situation that has caused you to have that new wish or desire too.

 And if you can begin to see how having the problem in the first place has been the starting point for you to make a better life for yourself, then perhaps you may be able to begin to feel just a little bit grateful for the things that are causing you problems right now. And as we know – according to the Law of Attraction, like attracts like, and being grateful will attract into our lives even more for us to be grateful for.

 And my tale of the barking dog doesn't end here. I've decided that what I really need is somewhere new to live and work which is secluded, peaceful, and quiet. And I'm placing a Cosmic Order and imagining it happening already. So, you see, I'm really grateful to that dog for showing me what I really want and setting me on my way to a lovely new home!