Emotions play a huge role in one’s life. Some emotions like being disappointed, being heartbroken, asking for help, being bored, being sad that may not be the best feelings to go through but necessary for our growth and to move in your life are not being often talked about. Similarly expressing gratitude is not being talked about unless you actively cultivate a spiritually inclined tribe focused on wellness. Gratitude, the emotion, of being thankful for what you have can have a huge impact on life. I would not be saying that if I have not experienced it. For the last one year I have started practicing gratitude religiously and yes! It has changed my life.
I was not going through the good phase of my life when I started practicing it. I was dealing with failures, hopelessness. I have lost my best friend. In all honesty, I felt so unhappy about everything. I did not want to meet someone or to go out. Even getting out of bed was a huge struggle for me. It was until then I came across a quote where it says
“Gratitude makes sense of your past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow”
~Melody Beathe
This quote hit me hard and I started researching more and more about it. That day I decided to take at least 5 minutes each day and focus on things that I am being grateful for despite how I would be feeling that day. Each day I would start writing about 10 things that I was thankful for and similarly, I end up my day with writing about 10 things that happened that day that I was being grateful of.
There were days during this year where I do not want to practice it. Days where everything falls apart, where you feel all the efforts that put in yourself to getting out of that condition went in vain. But I still tried to take my time out and express my gratitude toward little things in my journal.
Here I would say that being grateful is not always about materialistic things. It isn’t always about the luxury car you have, the most fashionable clothes you wear, the house you own, or the bank balance you have. It can be of little things like having a functional body that enables you not to be dependant on someone, for the little moments, good laughter with your friends, time that you spend with your family. You can express gratitude towards how you were able to enjoy an ice cream or how pleasant the weather was.
Gratitude has helped me to look at the positive side of life. It has helped me to ignore the negativity that existed in my life. Have you ever noticed that out of all things that happened in your life you would always think about that one negative comment passed by someone or one negative thought you came across? Each day when I start off my day with journaling about how I am being grateful for things it helped me think at the positive side of my life.
It has taught me it’s not always necessary that happiness comes after you got that job, got good grades, bought expensive clothes. Happiness was never bound to it. It was us that has brought the perimeter of being happy. Surely pride and satisfaction come with it but you can be happy with little things or moments in your life.
It has developed a strong sense of faith in me that no matter how worse things may go there would be always something that you can be grateful for. It has evolved me into an optimistic person and has changed the perspective about life that how you feel about it should be more important than how it looks like. Surely it has taken some time to show results but eventually, my journey of being grateful was worth it.
How to start practicing gratitude in your life?
- Start with small steps:
I would suggest you take out some time and talk to yourself about how you want to spend your life? Are you going to live the same way you are living or you want a better person having a perspective about life? If the answer is yes then start talking action little by little. For gratitude make your self-goal of taking out at least five minutes and even if you do not journal just think about the things that you are being grateful for. It will make you motivated.
- Make it habitual:
After you have started on this journey of practicing gratitude, please make an effort of being habitual. Even if you are feeling low that day make it your habit of taking out some time to practice it. Develop an attitude of gratitude. Start saying thank you to the salesperson from whom you bought products or the driver that picked you from school. Or show gratitude by posting on Facebook, Pinterest, or Instagram and feel about being grateful
- Don’t stop even after you get the results:
Now that you have embarked yourself on the journey of expressing gratitude and you have started seeing the results, do no stop it. It’s okay if you have not done it for a day or two after all you are human too. But try to keep practicing it. You will feel lighter, motivated and inspired.
In the end, I would say that it’s important we talk about the things that truly matter. We should put an effort to make people learn about things or practices as small as expressing gratitude that but can have a long-lasting impact on life. I wish all of you who are reading this and planning to embark on the journey of being grateful best of luck. Here’s to peace and love in your life!