An Attitude of Gratitude
Welcome back!
These days with the economy in trouble, we hear more and more how people are having to go without. The news paints the bleakest picture possible. Stores are reporting weak sales. The notion that people are not out shopping means to many that people are just going without, and are suffering because of it.
I could not disagree with this idea more. Although this economy can be scary, there is a slight beauty to it. We as a nation are being brought back to the most basic necessities of life, and to me, that is not necessarily a bad thing. The average American’s life is so over complicated with things that we do not need, that is time for us our society to get back to basics and realize what we do have, not what we do not have.
So many people made New Year’s resolutions to lose wait, or cutback on certain things, but I resolved to be truly thankful for what I do have. When I really think about it, I am so blessed. I don’t own a house, money is super tight for me and things are not totally rosy in my life right now. But I believe that you must recognize what you do have and be thankful for it to be ready to receive more.
This past December, my husband and I really had a hard time financially, we were having to cook the stuff in the back of the cupboard, the stuff that you never actually cook. As I was making another bag or Ramen soup, feeling so broke, a thought came to me, I am so lucky to have this food. I am blessed to have a stove to cook it on, and natural gas to heat the stove. When I started to think about my measly Ramen dinner in this way, I was grateful and happy that I had it.
I started to apply this attitude of gratefulness to all aspects of my life, I have a car that is 10 years old, it’s not as beautiful as it once was but, it runs. When I have to stand out in the cold to pump gas, rather than grumble about how cold it is or how much gas costs, I am grateful for the car and grateful that I have money to buy gas. The most grateful thing that I think of is how wonderful it is to have that technology, thank God we do not travel on horseback! We can be somewhere instantly in a car, not take half a day to get somewhere.
I know all of this sounds a little “pollyannish” but really take a step back, examine your life, if you look around all of you, you really do have a lot to be grateful for. I think the biggest thing to be thankful for is the people in your life. I will never stop being thankful that I have my husband, he is a great partner and I know that we can make it though anything together. I am even grateful for the people that cause stress in my life because they make me stronger as a person,
So, don’t feel so badly, everyone is having some type of struggle right now. Struggles are character builders. Be grateful for what you do have, and forget about what you do not have. In the grand scheme of things, think about what really DOES matter, prioritize. I promise that if you really do this, life will be much happier and this recession will be much easier to get through.
Like my mother always said, ask yourself one question: “Is it going to matter in 20 years?”
If it won’t, then it’s not really that important.
