(Updated on 11th February 2020, by Shilpa Gupte)
I don’t remember just when, but, years ago, I began the ritual of expressing gratitude to the Universe before I began my day…
“Thank you, God, for everything and everybody I have in my life!”
Slowly and steadily, as I realized the meaning behind those words, the depth in this simple prayer, I understood how blessed I was! And, I don’t mean the materialistic things that I possess, but the people in my life, the kind of life I live, my health…the list is, actually, endless.
There were trying times, as there always will be, but through it all, the attitude of gratitude stayed, unchanged. Those are still the first and the last words I utter every day. But, as I begin each day, I realise how, had it not been for this attitude, I would have taken it all for granted!
We, humans, are an unsatisfied lot. That would be an understatement. We take for granted the life we have been blessed with, the people we have in our lives and the way our lives function.
Most of the time, our’s is the attitude of, “I am a self-made man/woman!” scarcely giving a moment’s thought to whether it’s really we who are the architects of our lives, our destinies.
We do realize this truth, though, when we come face to face with challenging times, when life doesn’t co-operate with our plans and decides to go haywire.
That’s when we realize the importance of what we have, as opposed to what we wish we had, and we learn to be grateful for it all!
A roof over our head.
Food on our table.
A family who dotes on us, and makes us a priority.
A happy and healthy family.
The love and blessings of our parents and our siblings, and the unconditional love of our friends, who go out of their way to help us, support us in every way they can.
The ability and the resources to take care of the health concerns we/our family may face.
Everything that we need.
A job that helps us buy things that we need, ( so what if it’s not a great job, at least we are employed!)
A peaceful and happy environment to live in.
The freedom of choice.
Doctors we can put our trust in.
Teachers who help us make the right choices.
And, countless others who make our world a beautiful place.
Add to this list what you wish, but the list will always be endless!
Aren’t all the above things worth being grateful for? Just imagine how life would be had even one of the above been out of place.
Maybe a sick family member with no good doctor to treat them.
A child needing extra help in academics with no reliable teacher to assist him.
Or, worse.
Living in a place where the freedom to live your life the way you wish is snatched away from you and you live by the norms set by some gun-totting, so-called “revolutionaries”.
Or, residing in a place that lacks basic amenities, or in a society that completely lacks any peace or order.
You can guess the places I talk about here, isn’t it? All you need to do is switch on the TV and look for world news, and you will be grateful for where you live.
Being grateful when life is going smooth, is easy. But, staying grateful in spite of all that’s going wrong with your life, now, that’s difficult.
Practicing gratitude precisely during the adversities brings about enlightenment, and you cease taking for granted all that you have, all those you have.
It also helps keep us grounded and feeling fortunate that, though times are tough, we have the few things that would otherwise make a whole lot of difference by their absence!
Think about it.
Just writing this post makes me want to renew my Gratitude List!
Do you believe in the power of gratitude?
In your journal, make a list of 5 things you are grateful for every day. Write these down before going to bed every night and watch your perception towards your life change, dramatically.
Love,
SHILPA…
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I am participating in the January 2018 Gratitude Circle blog hop, at Vidya Sury, Collecting Smiles.
Do share your posts on Gratitude and join the linky!
Agree…I am not a big rituals type of person but thank you is one thing I keep telling the almighty.
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Same here, Shoma! The Universe is happy with just a heartfelt, “Thank you!”. 🙂
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Expressing gratitude does make one feel blessed and makes one appreciate what one has . Indeed it is a good practice as most of us forget how lucky we are to be where we are .
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And, it gets better with practice, isn’t it, Sunita? Gratitude needs to be expressed everyday, made into a habit, which will help keep us in good stead all our life!
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You’re right, Shilpa. So much to be grateful for, isn’t it? We often undermine what life offers us everyday, including the bad days and the hard knocks in life which teach us a lesson or two about life that we wouldn’t have learnt otherwise. Thank you for this beautiful and inspiring post, Shilpa. Your positive vibes are ready to reach out to your readers this Monday morning. Have a blessed Monday. 🙂
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Now, I am grateful for having done this post, Esha – I am reading your comment here that makes me feel so so good, about myself and about my writing! So, thank you, my dear!
You have a blessed Monday, too! ❤
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Oh absolutely, Shilpa. I agree with every word that you’ve written. The reason why I do these posts every month. It is important to really appreciate what we have, makes us happier in general.
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Yes, Rachna..Happier and respectful of all that we have in our life!
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Lovely and thoughtful post
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Thank you, Balaka!
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Start and end the day with a thanks to the Almighty is a good practice to follow. Good post.
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Thank you, Suzy!
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This is one prayer we must all say, and live by. We always have much more than we need.
Beautiful post, Shilpa.
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We really have been blessed with so much, Mayuri, we may not even realise if we offer no thanks to the Universe!
Thank you, my dear!
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Loved your post. When we were kids, my Mum used to ask my brother and me to thank God for a good day. I did that for many years and much later realized that it was being grateful for what we have. Like you said, not the materialistic things but the people, the love, companionship. Beautiful post and I couldn’t agree more.
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It’s the little things we tend to forget in the quest for bigger, tangible things we lack in our life that makes us distressed, Parul. it’s a lesson I have learnt over the years – to be grateful for every little thing I have been blessed with!
Thank you so much! ❤
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Small things matter and most of the times these small things in life do fetch the great joys of living. Unfortunately we keep on searching for the next big thing to be happy and forget about what we already have in our folds.
Rightly said, Shilpa…”Attitude of gratitude” is one thing that we all should imbibe ; earlier the better!
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How well you summed it up, Anagha!
Thank you so much! ❤
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Expressing gratitude makes one happy and feel blessed.
I don’t exercise it on daily basis but when get chance to visit temples make sure to express my gratitude to almighty force.
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Dipika, all you need to do, is say,”Thank you!”, wherever you are – while working, or getting ready to sleep, or on waking up in the morning. Those two tiny words are really enough! 🙂
Thank you for dropping by! ❤
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‘Thank You’, it is so simple to say and yet people struggle to. Everyday one needs to sit down and think about one thing they are thankful for for that day. It would make life seem so easier and blessed.
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So true, Soumya! It is the most easiest prayer for us humans. I wonder why we hesitate so much to express our gratitude to the Universe for giving us so much!
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Well said and so true. I believe firmly in the power of prayer and the gratitude habit. It has kept me grounded through the toughest times of my life.
My gratitude post goes up on Wednesday 🙂 Loved reading yours, Shilpa. May we always remember to count our blessings. Today and everyday.
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Yes, Shailaja..may we express gratitude to the littlest of things that can matter so much in our lives!
Looking forward to your Gratitude post, dear!
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I liked your post 👍 well written 🙂
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Thank you so much, Sachin! 🙂
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Yes, an attitude of gratitude is just what we need! As soon as I wake up, I thank God for giving me another day. This is a practice that was inculcated during childhood and I still practice it. We are so busy complaining about the things that we dont have that we forget the things that we have.
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True, Reema…and by being ignorant about the blessings, we take life for granted. Being alive, able to see the new day is in itself a blessing – something we don’t even realise!
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Lovely post, Shilpa. I would love it if you’d leave a link to this on my link-up, #Thankful Thursday
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Thank you, Shirley!
Will do it right away! 🙂
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Thank you!
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I loved the point about staying grateful even in tough situations. It takes a strong will to stay positive even when you see your world falling apart. Being grateful can be such a warm yet overpowering feeling, it can change the way we do or say things, change our perspective. I too say a thank you prayer, but at the end of the day. 😊
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Being thankful even in difficult situations is what I learnt from my mother. Every time I worry about certain things not being in my life, or not working out, she says that I must be thankful for all that I already have. That Life is still beautiful and perfect…we are alive and well and working to the best of our ability – isn’t that perfect?
These are my mom’s words that urge me to keep going, keep being thankful, in spite of it all!
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Such a wonderful post. Our prayers are almost always full of what we want, and we just forget to say Thank You God… Its so easy to forget and be thankful for what we have as we covet for something more…. then more… then more…
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True….we forget what we have, always do! That’s why this post, to remind me to be thankful for all that I have and leave the rest to God!
Thank you for dropping by, Archana!
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Such effortless flow of thoughts as in this post will only come from a person who has a grateful heart. I have believed in the power of saying Thank you as compared to any kind of prayer or ritual in God’s name. Some mornings, as soon as I wake, my mind may not have turned on but I hear gratitude coming out of my heart for the love I have experienced, for the love I have now, for the Providence, for the lessons, for the calmness, different mornings different thoughts or all the thoughts on one given morning. I feel blessed that the universe has made it so easy for me that my mind, my heart and I can function as 3 different entities existing in awe of each other 🙂
Thodi zyada philosophy ho gayi kya par philosophy main bhi maza hai 😀 Have a bright and cheerful day.
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More than my words in my post, Anamika, your comment here blew me away!
I feel blessed even when I have had a good night’s sleep! For many nights, I toss and turn, cursing the slight sound that woke me from a deep slumber.
There are a thousand things to be grateful for – even for our sleep – which we take for granted. Those thousand things and some more are what I am grateful for, every single day.
Philosophy kabhi kabhi jhadni bhi chahiye, Anamika….iour words have the power to enlighten not just others, but ourselves, too!
You have a bright and a cheerful day, too!
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kabhi kabhi jhadni bhi chahiye, loved this line for the word jhadna. Long time not heard or said this word. And yes a good night’s sleep is also worth being grateful for. I am adding this to my long list.
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😛
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Wonderful post! Thank you for linking to my linkup. Answers to Questions I would never have asked! #SYW
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Lovely sentiments and totally heartfelt by me too! Gratitude for things we have is so so important. All our discontentment arises from running after things we dont have vs being unhappy/uncaring for what we do have in our life.
More power to you Shilpa
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And, to you too, my dear!
Thank you so much! Stay blessed! ❤
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Once we start thinking about it there are so many things to be grateful for. I loved the simple things you’ve listed. Most of have them most of the time and yet we’re dissatisfied.
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Yes, Tulika..We just need to train ourselves to focus better! 🙂
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Gratitude definitely turns what we have into enough and attracts all sorts of good things because we’re ready to appreciate them. Your post is a lovely affirmation, Shilpa! thank you for joining the Gratitude Circle! Hugs!
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It was a pleasure doing this post, Vidya. I really wrote it for myself, to remind myself of how blessed I am! 🙂
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