During this pandemic, we all have struggled with our emotional, mental, physical health and many have suffered because of the massive shift this pandemic has brought into our lives. On one hand, there are people who are still struggling to accept all these changes whereas on the other hand there are people who have used this time period for bringing a positive transformation in society. They have used this period to bring positivity and happiness to others’ lives by starting mental health awareness initiatives, providing the needy with the basic necessities, helping the underprivileged with all the means they can collect. These people aren’t any different from common people but what actually makes them different is their attitude of gratitude and an urge to serve other people. People who have the attitude of showing gratitude towards the smallest things have been able to enjoy even the toughest phases of life and blossom like beautiful flowers. Let’s explore how an attitude of gratitude can help you and other people around you.

1. You are Alive

“If you only say one prayer in a day, make it Thank you.” – Rumi

This is really important for all of us to end our day by saying thank you for everything we came across today. The moment you say thank you, you appreciate each and everything this day gifted you with. There would be many who couldn’t make it to their homes, lost their lives and their near and dear ones and because of n number of reasons, they couldn’t survive this day. If you survived and have everything you need for living a happy and content life, then I think saying a “Thank you to the almighty” should come naturally to your mind.

2. Your Health

“Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn’t learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn’t learn a little, at least we didn’t get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn’t die; so, let us all be thankful.” – Buddha

This quote by Buddha explains the importance of gratitude very gracefully. We, humans, have the tendency to stick to bad things that we face and keep cribbing for the coming days. And in those moments, unintentionally we create an energy of lack and shortage in our lives. Buddha has very well explained that even if you have to face the worst setbacks in a day but at the end of the day if you look closely, you must have something to be grateful for.

3. Learning from the Past

“Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.” – Melody Beatie

There would hardly be any individual who doesn’t feel bad after looking at his past decisions and choices but practicing gratitude actually brings peace in individuals that whatever the past was, it was for a reason and it taught him many life lessons. This way having gratitude can make things clearer and brings acceptance for uncontrollable dimensions of one’s life. When an individual has accepted the past completely and have contentment in the present, he can set a bigger and better vision for the future.

4. You have Food, Water and Roof to Stay

“Give thanks for a little and you will find a lot.” – Hansa proverb

There are people who don’t feel grateful for the fulfillment of their basic needs and then there are people who struggle for the basic needs all their lifetime. We human beings don’t appreciate things until they become a dream or luxury for us. But the key to abundance and satisfaction is to be thankful for your food, clothes, house, job, and other necessities which are still a dream for many. If we show gratitude for the basic things, we attract bigger things in life.

5. You Passed the Harder Time

“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

This pandemic tested the people at one or the other level. People struggled in bringing a balance in their work-life and personal life. When such struggle is at the peak, gratitude can act as a savior for many. We just need to sit and maintain our sanity and look for the reasons to continue the daily battle. There are people who lost their loved ones, their jobs in pandemic time, their financial condition was meager. Such difficult situations are hard to deal with and it takes an emotional toll on the people. We all have to face struggles/obstacles but the attitude of gratitude makes the struggling process a little easier and always shows a path to move ahead in life.

6. Your People

“What you focus on expands, and when you focus on the goodness in your life, you create more of it. Opportunities, relationships, even money flowed my way when I learned to be grateful no matter what happened in my life.” – Oprah Winfrey

When it comes to being grateful, it is very important that you are surrounded by people who can support you with their grateful mindset. On seeing and observing people of both mindsets, it is quite evident that grateful have a different kind of contentment and acceptance towards the things which are uncontrollable. Such people give us the motivation to be grateful souls not just for our own benefit but for a grateful and happy society.

The emotion of gratitude has many benefits not just psychologically but physically as well. There are a good number of researches showing the positive impact of being thankful on one’s stress coping mechanism and sleep quality. You can reap all the health benefits of being grateful simply by saying THANK YOU for even the smallest of blessings.

Share the words with your loved ones to bring positivity around you.

With Love

Contributed by : MONICA

A Ph.D. student, strong believer of compassion, kindness, love, and of all those qualities through which this world can be made a better place. Also, I am a big admirer of soulful Sufi music, nature and its beautiful unaltered creations, and my tranquil solitude.