9 Transformative Appreciation Games — Part 01

Earlier this month, “9 Transformative Appreciation Games — Introduction” was published.

My intentions for this series, as well as the power these games offer, are clarified in that piece.

Right beneath this introduction, you will find the first three appreciation games.

My hope is that you enjoy reading this piece and, most importantly, enjoy playing these games.

Even more than that, my hope is that these games aid you in living the life you wish to live.

The “I Remember When” Game

Right now, think about something you would like to do.

Something special. Something magical. Something memorable.

For myself, this might be returning to Cambodia — a place I will return to later this year — or visiting Sarawak in Malaysian Borneo — a completely new adventure.

Right after recalling what it is that you would like to do, and making a choice to bring that desire to life, allow yourself to “Remember When” you enjoyed the fulfillment of that desire.

Rather than focusing on a single moment, allow yourself to focus on a series of moments.

Each one of these moments will serve as one part of a story.

For myself, this might entail remembering the following moments:

• Remembering When I Waited For My Plane At The Airport
• Remembering When I Landed At The Siem Reap Airport
• Remembering When I Moved Into My New Apartment
• Remembering When I Visited Angkor Wat
• Remembering When I Sat Outside, On A Nice Breezy Night, Reading A Book

The possibilities are vast. And, you can remember as many moments as you like.

Right as you remember each moment, allow yourself to appreciate that moment.

Just take a moment, while remembering each moment that relates to the fulfillment of your desire, to appreciate the beauty and uniqueness of that moment.

To make this especially effective, allow scenes — images and sensations — to come forth, so that you can experience each moment as if it is happening right now.

Rather than focusing solely on the “big moments” — landing at the airport, for example — try to focus on the smaller, more personal, moments.

Smaller, more personal, moments, such as sitting outside, feeling a nice breeze, holding a book in your hand, enjoying the ambient noise, feeling comfortable; and so on and so forth.

Right as you experience these moments, allow yourself to experience them as if they are happening right now, while appreciating the beauty of these moments.

You can play this game for as long as you want, remembering as many moments as you wish.

Right as you end the game, you should feel a sense of appreciation for the journey you have gone on — and, of course, will go on, physically — and the beauty within the moments you experienced.

Just know that, in appreciating those moments, you are bringing them to life.

Appreciating Your New Role

Every one of your most significant desires requires stepping into a new role.

A new role with new patterns and assumptions.

Or, something like that. This might not be true.

Just as an example, let’s say you wish to be a successful writer.

A successful writer possesses certain assumptions regarding who they are and the world they occupy.

To go along with that, a successful writer possesses certain patterns of behavior — thinking, feeling, and acting; to name three examples — which facilitate their success as a writer.

For you to step into this new role, you can begin appreciating your experience of this new role.

Returning to the “successful writer” example, you can:

• Appreciate The Ease In Which You Produce Valuable Content
• The Wonderful Clients You Work With
• The High-Quality Samples That Serve As Your Portfolio
• Being Able To Work Wherever You Want To Work
• Being Able To Work When You Want To Work
• Possessing More Than Enough Money To Do What You Wish To Do
• All Of The New Skills You’ve Developed
• Being Able To Communicate Well In Multiple Areas Of Your Life

And so on and so forth, for the possibilities are vast and infinite. And, in turn, there’s no time limit, or limit to the number of qualities you can appreciate.

Just let yourself come up with the qualities and traits of each role and, in doing so, allow yourself to appreciate those qualities and traits, as if you are already experiencing them.

The act of appreciating your new role will bring it to life.

Soon enough, this will be your role and, as such, you will be who you wish to be.

All it takes is appreciation.

Diving Into Your Appreciation

The two appreciation games outlined above are for creating the life you desire.

You can, of course, appreciate what exists right now. But, the intention is to appreciate what you desire.

For this game, though, both possibilities are easy and accessible.

To play this game, all you must do is think of something — anything at all — that you appreciate.

Or, perhaps, something that you don’t appreciate, but can grow to appreciate.

Right after you think of something, allow yourself to appreciate that thing.

Rather than thinking of just one thing, though, think of ten things you appreciate.

Or, perhaps, even more than that.

Just to give you an example, let’s say you appreciate a piece of music.

You can, while appreciating that piece of music, appreciate the:

• Unique Melody Of The Piece
• Images It Conjures
• Beauty Of The Singer’s Voice
• Sense Of Nostalgia It Evokes
• Inspiration It Creates

And so on and so forth, for the possibilities are infinitely vast.

To go along with that, you can take a moment to appreciate the unique qualities within one of the elements you appreciated just moments ago.

A good example of this might be appreciating the sense of nostalgia a piece of music evokes:

• Appreciating The Beauty Of Nostalgia, As A Feeling
• Appreciating That Time In Your Life
• Appreciating The Choices You Made, Back Then
• Appreciating The Ways You’ve Grown
• Appreciating The Ways In Which We, As Beings, Can Create Works Of Art
• Appreciating The Moment, For It May Be A Moment You Long For, Later On
• Appreciating Other Moments You Are Nostalgic For

And so on and so forth, for there are many possibilities within this, as well.

Right after playing this game, you will experience a soothing sense of appreciation.

Even more than that, though, a number of new paths and opportunities will arise.

Paths and opportunities buried within the depths of what you chose to appreciate.

For appreciating a piece of music may inspire you to:

• Make Your Own Music
• Learn About The History Of Music
• Return To Activities You Once Loved
• Return To Places You Once Loved
• Dive Into A New Creative Pursuit

And so on and so forth.

Regardless of that, though, you will, if nothing else, feel a nice, soothing sense of appreciation.

A nice, soothing sense of appreciation that allows you to be at peace.

Conclusion

Every single one of the appreciation games outlined in this piece is transformative.

Or, rather, each game has the power to transform your life, as well as your very sense of self.

My hope is that you play these games and, in doing so, enjoy that power.

Regardless of that, though, thank you so much for reading this essay!

Soon enough, before the end of the month, the final two parts will be published.

As always, if you want to reach me, for any reason, you can do so at “maxwellcakin@gmail.com”.

Best wishes, and have a lovely day!