It is easy to be sour when things seem to be against us. We almost naturally succumb to desperation and invite ourselves to pity parties, bringing about all the negatives or what is lacking in our lives. And in that state, we tend to be grumpy, sensitive, and generally pessimistic that we are drawn to if-onlys, what-could-have-beens, etcetera.
But when we are grateful, we appreciate even the little things. We see situations differently. We have better perspectives. When circumstances are difficult, we look at the brighter side instead of dwelling on something that makes us sad. We count our blessings and even with less, we feel we have more.
As the Queen of Talks (Oprah Winfrey) once said and I quote — "Be thankful for what you have; you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have, you will never, ever have enough." When we are thankful, blessings multiply because our focus shifts toward what we already have rather than what we don't.
Some people I know say it is easy to be grateful when one is happy but I beg to disagree. When we give thanks even for the most mundane things, our hearts feel lighter and we are happier. So I would say the reverse is true — it is easy to be happy when there is gratefulness (gratitude) within us. Gratitude mends a pained heart.
I once was a depressed person for years (when I got married) due to certain circumstances that made me concentrate on what I thought was the unfairness of life. Thankfully, some things helped me snap out of that lonely space. Learning to keep a Gratitude Journal was one of them. I did it for a good number of years but then life happened and that had taken the sides but it doesn't mean I am no longer thankful.
The journaling helped me cultivate a grateful heart that even when I am no longer writing the things I'm thankful for, I whisper "thank you" more often. Those two words are a prayer to me. In fact, it is the only prayer I say every day. It is my grace before a meal. It's my prayer before a trip, before closing my eyes to sleep, or when I wake up - it's for everything.
And I'm thankful that even when I say it a lot of times in a day (silently or loudly), it doesn't get depleted, as Fred De Witt Van Amburgh said, "Gratitude is a currency that we can mint for ourselves, and spend without fear of bankruptcy."
So yeah, let's continue to mint and spend this free yet valuable currency throughout our lifetime and be happy :)
This by the way is my reflection and approach to one of the topics on the SeptemberInLeo prompt.
Images by Marcus Wöckel and Pixabay. 08092024/23:55utc