If you look at what you have in life, you’ll always have more. If you look at what you don’t have in life, you’ll never have enough.
Oprah Winfrey
Gratitude is a handy virtue. It helps us appreciate whatever precious little we have in our lives. Gratitude can manifest itself in more than one way. For some, it means thanking the Almighty for every new day, which translates into a lot of new possibilities and challenges. Others may see it as an opportunity to stop and appreciate the things our near and dear ones do to make our lives better. Thankfulness is not just good for our soul, but for our relations as well. You never know how a simple ‘thank you’ or ‘I appreciate the things you do for me’ can brighten up someone’s day.
On the other hand, we must also be wary of letting appreciation of the small things in life disfigure into complacency. In other words, while you must always be thankful for everything you have in life, this should be no reason to stop working hard. After all, the best way to express your gratitude to God and your loved ones is by justifying the trust they put in you. At the same time, you must make sure that your quest to improve does not lead to a sense of dissatisfaction with what you are at present. This may sound confusing, and the balancing act is indeed a very fine one, but the key here is to give everyone their due – including to yourself.
To conclude, while it is not easy to appreciate the things we have in life, it is certainly a habit that can be nurtured with some practice. Surprisingly, the more you feel content with you have got, the more motivated you feel to go one better. A quote of the celebrated American author and actress, Oprah Winfrey, may be useful in this regard: “If you look at what you have in life, you’ll always have more. If you look at what you don’t have in life, you’ll never have enough.”