“Acknowledging the good that you already have in your life is the foundation for all abundance.” – Ekhart Tolle
Gratitude or gratefulness, is a feeling of appreciation felt by the recipient of kindness, gifts, help, favors, or other types of generosity, towards the giver of such gifts. Gratitude turns what we already have into enough. It gives us a feeling of satisfaction and eternal peace. Gratitude is the best medicine, it heals one’s mind, body, and spirit, and it attracts more things to be grateful for.
Why do we need to practice gratitude?
“The struggle ends where gratitude begins”.
We all are surrounded by beautiful nature, we have our favorite people around us and we have enough food, clothes, and facilities. But, it is quite common that we take these things for granted. When we take things for granted, we are not satisfied with what we have and we strive to get something else, if we get it, then again we want something else, and we are never satisfied. Consider the present situation where we all are sitting at our respective houses. Earlier we could freely roam around, walk-in streets and parks, visit beautiful places, enjoy the fresh air and beauty of nature. But, we used to take all these for granted. We were really not grateful for the places around us, the beauty around us. But, now we realize its importance. The reality is that we always have enough of the resources around us for our survival. But, sadness drives in when we don’t appreciate what we have and take that for granted. Each one of us is living a life that is actually a dream life for a second person. So, just embrace it.
Imagine your life without the people around you, who are always there with you and support you. If you remove them from your life and think deeply, you will realize that they have a big role to play in your life which you never really thought about. The people around you are precious, value them, and be grateful to them that they are with you. Imagine a day without food, clothes, shoes, or air. If you do this exercise, you realize that you have enough of these things. Your desire to eat in a restaurant and to wear stylish clothes was really not that important. You get your food every day, you have clothes and shoes to wear. So, be thankful for what you have. Each and everything we get in our life, each and everything happening to us is very valuable to build us, to build our personality. Everything happens for a good reason. Being thankful for everything we get and for every event we come across gives us a satisfactory feeling, it eliminates negativity and makes our life more pleasurable. Saying thank you to another person pleases them and us too.
What do we get out of it?
A grateful heart is a magnet for miracles. The day you start practicing gratitude, it never ends. The more you express your gratitude for what you have, the more things you will have to express gratitude for. It gives you immense peace, happiness, and satisfaction. It rewires our brain and reduces stress. It boosts our immunity, improves relationships, and makes each day more beautiful. It makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow. Gratitude is the most wonderful feeling. Once you start practicing it, there is no way back.
“Thank You ” is the best prayer anyone could say.