“It’s A (Great)ful Thing”
“In all things give thanks. We have so much to be thankful for and we should not just have one day that we express that gratitude…having a spirit of gratitude is major and everyday we should be thankful.”
Les Brown
Quote source: In All Things Give Thanks/Les Brown (Les Brown) (Youtube published date 11/25/20)
Stock photo source: aspirebookclub.com
How many times have we heard the saying you don't know what you've got until it's gone?! A couple of years back while working I threw my back out. It was like one minute I was fine and the next I could barely walk. While recovering at home one day I was on the computer and had been sitting for a while. When I was finished, not remembering that my back was totally out of whack, I jumped up as usual to go on with my next task of the day and was quickly reminded that my back would not allow me to go on as I normally did before it went out. As I almost fell to the floor I realized how important ones back is in being able to go about their day to day lives. I had never thought about that before and for the first time things were put into perspective for me. It dawned on me that I was taking so many things for granted. With this experience I vowed to be more grateful and appreciate not just the obvious things that I had but also the "little" things that aren't as obvious but I was so quickly and easily taking for granted.
When it comes to living in a state of gratitude it is important to know how to put things into perspective. Take a look around, there are so many people that aren't as fortunate to have the things that others don't think twice about like food, shelter, family, friends and even being able to breathe, see, walk and hear. Because these are things that are readily available to most it is easier to dismiss them and count them as "little things" however when we understand the importance of them and that they can be taken away at any given moment they become a lot more significant and we learn to appreciate them a little bit faster. We tend to take for granted the things that we need but have because we are able to get them and tend to be unappreciative for the things we have because at times they can overshadow the things that we want.
It's all about how we choose to look at it. I'm sure that we are all able to name a few things that we feel are not going right in our lives right now or even things that we don't have, however I'm also as sure that with those few things that we are also able to name at least 10 more things that we do have and that are going right that counter acts those few that we feel are lacking. At times we are challenged with the task of getting through difficult situations that will inevitably show up in our lives. Some of these situations of course are more challenging than others and it is natural to not always see the good in them while we are in the midst of the experience. We may ask the question "why me?" I always ask the question, "why not me?" We have the ability to choose how we approach these situations and whether or not we are able to learn the lessons embedded in them. We should also consider the idea that the situations that we experience are not just meant for us, but are also meant to be a testament for others that it is possible to endure. When we are able to understand this we will begin to embrace and appreciate the experience and have more of a heart of gratitude towards them.
So how do we learn to live in gratitude? I think one of the best ways is to master how to find the positive, no matter how small it may seem in any situation. Living in the present is also a way to ensure that we don't take things for granted. So many times we rip and run around that we don't take the time to breathe and as cliche as it sounds "smell the roses". Take the time to stop and be present and really think about all the blessings in life and all that they have to offer. Also, helping others gives opportunity to spread the spirit of gratitude and to reciprocate those blessings to others.
I encourage us today to continue to operate in appreciation and gratitude because as writer Melody Beattie states, "Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, and confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.”