Gratitude makes sense for our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow. – Melody Beattie
Gratitude packs more punch than any nuke.
You’ve to agree with this.
The word may give rise to feelings of kindness, helpfulness, generosity, empathy, and other such virtues; everything nice, warming your heart.
But saying that one word can transform lives.
Yet you forget its value in the hustle – bustle of the daily grind.
Your list of grievances or disappointments will not disappear. But accepting what you have, being grateful for it, will surely reduce the negativity that’s clouding your thinking.
An important life lesson for the younger generation.
The Ripple Effect of Neglecting Gratitude
It’s so easy to forget what you have when you are busy chasing the proverbial rainbow; or in the real world, the deadlines and targets.
Focus tends to be on the unachieved, and not on the ‘have it’ list.
This can lead to a downward spiral of disappointments and dissatisfaction and loads of negativity.
You don’t want that, do you?
Have you noticed how often when you’re together with your family, you’re only complaining about this person or that incident? Your negativity trickles down into the regular conversation. Not an ideal situation.
Children are watching your actions, behaviour and attitude. And they are learning all that from you.
To be unhappy, dissatisfied, disappointed, with the way things are.
They are learning that life’s cruel and unfair.
They learn to be unappreciative and ungrateful for what they have got and grow up with these negative feelings. This can lead to avoidable stress, unhappiness and maybe even mental health issues.
Taking Responsibility: The Role of Adults
Your role as adults, whether you’re a parent or educator, is to ensure you create an environment of gratitude.
Teach them to appreciate the small things in life, focus on the good, and being grateful.
The next time you’re catching up with your family, focus on the good things that happened during the day.
Something nice someone did or something funny and happy. It changes the atmosphere at home.
The children will want to tell you about the wonderful things that happened during the day. Help them focus on the positives; the negatives will be taken care of.
With these basics in place, they’ll grow up with a positive mindset.
They’ll have stronger relationships because they appreciate the others in their lives.
They’ll develop a better sense of self-worth because they’ll be grateful for what they have and work with it.
Sounds too simple to be true but it’s an immutable fact of life.
Being grateful can be a powerful life altering attitude.
Closing Thoughts
An uneducated helper at school had pointed out this wisdom to me many years ago.
Despite all the hardships she was facing, she always had a positive attitude and a big smile.
Her secret – be grateful. When nurtured, it will fill your lives with joy, peace and contentment. The problems won’t go away but they will become bearable.
You don’t need big degrees and doctorates to understand this.
Let’s begin one “Thank you” at a time. We owe it to the younger generation.
p.s. Don’t forget to grab a copy of my new ebook! Available on Crazy Wise Owl Shop.
