The Gift of Gratitude — Astonishing Perspective Makes Life Better
Dancing Elephants prompt 8 of 52
Dear Reader,
I would like to thank Vidya Sury, Collecting Smiles from Dancing Elephants Press for the writing prompt in gratitude. She wrote an article at https://readmedium.com/what-are-you-grateful-for-9e20d6d99e30. Her writing is wonderful, and I recommend reading her article as soon as possible.
Introduction
This is an article about gratitude. Before we get started with my explanation of what I am grateful for I believe we need to define what being grateful means. To that end, I proffer the following:
Being grateful means being full of pleasure. To appreciate the benefits received. Pleasing by reason of comfort supplied or discomfort alleviated. Merriam Webster. Some people may think that being grateful and being thankful are the same thing. That is not true.
Being grateful means, we have an internal response to someone else acting. It is a transformation of our internal state. We can maintain this grateful state if we are open to receiving. It can exist as a feeling, a state of being. In the Merriam-Webster dictionary, it is defined as being conscious of the benefit received or expressive of thanks.
The difference between being thankful and being grateful is that thanks is an acknowledgment and gratitude goes beyond consciousness to a sense of appreciation. Also, being thankful means, we take the action of verbal affirmation when we realize that a benefit was received.
Knowing the difference between these terms can help us communicate with our emotions and process them better to communicate emotions to other people. Gratefulness leads to gratitude; this is a virtue and a transformative state. It helps us connect better with the people around us and can bring joy into our lives.
A new perspective can change things. Knowing the difference between thankfulness and gratitude can bring understanding to how we feel, speak, treat others, and write. Knowing how to identify our emotions can bring self-awareness to deal with negative feelings.
Gratitude can transform negativity into growth. https://liveboldandbloom.com/07/values/grateful-vs-thankful Livebold&bloom website, Grateful vs. Thankful: What’s the difference between these feelings? Barrie Davenport, July 24, 2022 https://liveboldandbloom.com/07/values/grateful-vs-thankful
Some people believe keeping a gratitude list or journal (a compilation of things you feel grateful for) helps us to get past negativity and to look at the positive side of things. They say that it helps people with anxiety, depression, or any life struggle so that they do not lose hope. Some of the benefits of gratitude include:
It gives perspective, it orients you, it provides hope, and it reduces stress. Things kept in a journal of this type include things you are grateful for, people you are grateful for, and the highlights of your day.
Examples of what might be on your list or in your journal are things such as family who loves you, friends you can relate to, significant other, ears to listen to podcasts and music, the ability to talk, access to food, the internet, and this list could go on and on.
The important thing here is to have these things written down. This allows you to read through the list or journal and change negative thoughts into more positive thinking. This can really help when you have a bad day or things are not going right for you.
For this article, we were provided 6 prompts as follows:
1. 3 things I am grateful for in my life
2. What I love most about my home
3. This week, I am grateful for this (a special moment, an event)
4. A gadget I am grateful for
5. Something from the past that I’m grateful for is…
6. A gift that I’m most grateful for is…
We were told we could use one, several, or all of them. I chose to respond to all of them.
3 Things I Am Grateful for in my life:
The first thing I am thankful for is my nuclear and extended family. By that, I mean my wife and our grown children and their children. Also, my mom and dad, brother and sisters, and my wife’s brothers and sister. Without family and all that they have meant to me and my family, life would not have been as enjoyable as it has been. We are grateful for all these people and for knowing we could turn to them if the going got rough.
The next thing I would like to say about being grateful is that I am grateful for my faith in God and his son, Jesus Christ. The bible tells me that if we put our faith and trust in him and live our lives as he would have us to live them that he will watch over and help us in this life and will take us to heaven to be with him when we die.
Another thing that I am grateful for is the nice home that my wife and I live in. It is a 3 bedroom, 2 bath, split floor plan with a large open living area, a breakfast area, and a formal dining room. It also has a large master ensuite bathroom, a huge closet for the master bedroom, a large area with double sinks and a bathtub and shower, and a separate toilet room.
The kitchen has a huge pantry. There is also a large laundry room. The layout is all on one floor, so we do not have to climb stairs (arthritic knees make that difficult). This is the home of our dreams, and we love living here.
What I Love Most About My Home
Our home has the perfect layout for us. We looked at hundreds of homes before finding this one and none seemed to hit the mark as well. The master bedroom suite is the best we have seen. It provides us with room for a king-sized bed, dresser, nightstands, and a separate sitting area.
We live on a cul-de-sac with no thoroughfare, so it is very quiet most of the time. We have an oversized 2-car garage where we park our vehicles. This makes it more bearable when we need to go somewhere because the weather is hot in Florida. Parking inside helps to keep the cars cooler and we can get into our cars without going out into the hot sun.
This week, I am grateful for this (a special moment, an event)
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We were able to get my car running again! This was after we had replaced the starter, alternator, and several other parts and we still could not get the car started. The neighbor took about 10 minutes to look at the car, then we pulled up a clip on UTUBE and were able to determine what we thought the problem was.
Our neighbor repaired the clutch safety switch and the car started. This was a very welcome event for both my wife and me. We were both grateful that the neighbor helped us out and got the car running without asking for anything in return. It is wonderful to have such good neighbors.
A gadget I am grateful for
I am thankful for my computer and the ability to use it to write articles on medium.com. Also being able to perform research and write and receive email allows us to stay in touch with other people and businesses. We can also benefit from reading the news stories that appear on the internet.
Without this machine, I am not at all sure that I would be able to write articles and if I was able to do so it would take me a disproportionate amount of time. Instead of sitting home comfortably and writing, not having the computer would mean many trips to the downtown library.
This would require additional time, wear and tear on my car, and additional money for gasoline to get back and forth from home to the library and vice versa.
Something from the past that I’m grateful for is…
The role my grandparents played in my life. Getting to know my grandparents and spending time with them helped me to understand the importance of keeping a family close. Also, not meddling with the private affairs of the people in the family. Being available to assist when necessary was considered very important.
A gift that I’m most grateful for is…
My wife. She is the most beautiful example of a great life partner that I could have ever asked for. She is the love of my life. She has put up with me for 43 years now and has stayed loyal and devoted the entire time. She raised our children through good and bad times and provided an outstanding example of what a mother should be to her children. I am eternally grateful to her for the outstanding life we have managed to share together.
The following are some quotes about being thankful and grateful. Please note the author of the statement is annotated at the end of each quote.
Gratitude Quotes
Thankfulness is the beginning of gratitude. Gratitude is the completion of thankfulness. Thankfulness may consist mainly of words. Gratitude is shown in acts. — Henri Federic Amiel
When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around. — Willie Nelson
In ordinary life, we hardly realize that we receive a great deal more than we give and that it is only with gratitude that life becomes rich. — Dietrich Bonhoeffer
The soul that gives thanks can find comfort in everything; the soul that complains can find comfort in nothing. — Hannah Whitall Smith
Those with a grateful mindset tend to see the message in the mess. And even though life may knock them down, the grateful find reasons, if even small ones, to get up. — Steve Maraboli
He is a wise man who does not grieve for the things which he has not but rejoices for those which he has. — Epicurus
Gratitude is the healthiest of human emotions. The more you express gratitude for what you have, the more likely you will have even more to express gratitude for. — Zig Ziglar
What separates privilege from entitlement is gratitude. — Brene Brown
No duty is more urgent than giving thanks. — James Allen
When you are grateful, fear disappears, and abundance appears. — Tony Robbins
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I would love to give a Big Shout Out to DR Rawson - The Possibilist for his article Did That Really Happen at https://readmedium.com/did-that-really-happen-793ddee3cc0b In this article he speaks to things that are we teach others and how these things should be suggestions and concentrate on benefits for the individual. I could not agree more. Great job on this article DR!
I would also love to give a Big Shout Out to Amna fayyaz for her article titled A Mother’s Love. https://readmedium.com/a-mothers-love-c94f1951e084 She is someone who understands the importance of a mother and the life lessons she teaches us. I could see my mother while reading through this poem. Thanks for sharing and I recommend anyone who loves their mom read this article. I know you will enjoy it because I sure did!