Gratitude gives full meaning to life. It is not just a moral or physical affair. It satiates the soul and makes what we have larger than life, enough, and more. It is a state of the mind. It involves a conscious mindset and a resolve to stop and take account of everything that makes life better, easier and more satisfying. Clothing oneself with gratitude and always relating with grateful people naturally makes things work in one's favour.
Gratitude should not just be felt within, it must be expressed outwardly to people who contribute to one's accomplishments - family members, friends, even strangers. When people show kindness to you, they may seem not to pay attention but in reality, they want to appreciated. Oftentimes, one act of gratitude to a person can open doors of many opportunities.
There are people who feel that there is nothing in life worth living for. They feel nobody loves them and so there is nothing to be grateful for in life. Most times, we do not even know what to be gratefur for because we have conditioned our minds to focus only on those negative situations in school, at work or in the neighborhood. People naturally have the propensity to focus on problems, disappointments and injustices in their lives rather than being grateful for the events that are working in their favour and the people that help them achieve success. The truth is there is always something to be thankful for. In difficult moments, focus on what you are thankful for and replace the negative thoughts with gratitude.
There are many ways to show gratitude. Gratitude goes beyond being just a moral or religious affair. As students, we were taught to use the golden words, "sorry" when we make mistakes, "thank you" when we receive something and "please" when we want something. Times and seasons always present us with golden opportunities to appreciate special people in our lives. We use events such as birthdays, wedding anniversaries, graduation and promotion to express gratitude to people. The end of the year is a very good season to show gratitude to ourselves and others. It is good to appreciate others but it is better to appreciate yourself first. When you reflect back into the year and recall instances where you achieve great feats, appreciate yourself, and then it will be easier to show gratitude to others.
Gratitude includes saying "thank you" and being polite. Expressing gratitude is the beginning of courtesy, generosity, concern and appreciation for friends, family members, schoolmates and others. You can do the following :-
- To begin with, you can make a list of what you are grateful for and the people you think you should show some gratitude. The list should include as many people as you can remember - classmates, co-workers, bosses, neighbours etc.
- Sometimes, we need to take time to think about the people in our lives and how they contribute to our happiness and well-being. Instead of just tossing the idea around in your brain, write a friend a note telling him or her what you appreciate about his or her presence in your life. Send your friends e-mails or texts telling them how you appreciate them and how special they are to you.
- Pay a gratitude visit. Your gratitude list should make you remember specifically what someone had done for you. So at your "gratitude appointment", you won't be caught empty handed. Buy them gifts as much as you can afford.
Gratitude should not be just a reaction to getting what you want but an all-the-time attitude, the kind in which you notice the little things and constantly look for the good even in unpleasant situations.