Always Grateful

Epictetus (AD 55-135) the Greek sage and Stoic philosopher observed:

“He is a wise man who does not grieve for the things which he has not, but rejoices for those which he has.”

If you are truly grateful for what you already have, will that stop you from seeking and obtaining more?  Is your role in life to be one who is always seeking?  Why not try rejoicing for a change.  What is the point of acquiring riches if you never take the time to enjoy them?

Thornton Wilder wrote:  “We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures.”

Interesting that Thornton mentions “heart” consciousness and not “mind” consciousness.  Mentally listing all the things we have to be grateful for is not the same as feeling gratitude for the things on the list.

According to Cicero:  “Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others.”

Just like Wallace Wattles observed, it all starts with gratitude.  Of course, Cicero predated Wattles by 2,000 years, so we know that this observation has stood the test of time.

“Gratitude is a fruit of great cultivation; you do not find it among gross people.”

Samuel Johnson, BOSWELL, Journal of a Tour to the Hebrides [September 20, 1773].

I have been re-reading Think and Grow Rich during the last month, and Napoleon Hill describes thoughts as “seeds” that you nurture and grow with your persistent attention.  It appears that gratitude may be the same — identify the persons, events, and things for which you are grateful each day, and grow your gratitude with persistent time and attention.

In the movie, Annie Hall, Woody Allen observes:

“I feel that life is divided into the horrible and the miserable.  That’s the two categories.  The horrible are like, I don’t know, terminal cases, you know, and blind people, crippled.  I don’t know how they get through life.  It’s amazing to me.  And the miserable is everyone else.  So you should be thankful that you’re miserable, because that’s very lucky, to be miserable.”

“What soon grows old?  Gratitude.”

Aristotle, DIOGENES LAERTIUS, Lives of Eminent Philosophers, bk. V, sec. 18.

This makes sense.  Do you find it difficult to be grateful for the same blessings experienced day after day?  In order to receive our gratitude, shouldn’t each day be required to produce something more and better than the day before?  After all, if you are not growing, you are dying.

“The gratitude of most men is merely a secret desire to receive greater benefits.”

Francois, Duc de La Rochefoucauld, Reflections; or, Sentences and Moral Maxims [1678]

322 years have passed, and we still suspect that some give only so they can get.

“No man has ever lived that had enough

Of children’s gratitude or woman’s love.”

William Butler Yeats, Vacillation, III, st. 1

Have you ever noticed how grateful children are for the simple act of giving them time and attention?

“Daddy, Daddy, look at me!”

Put down the paper, turn off the TV, and take the time to look.

Remember the story of the young girl who placed her hands on both sides of her father’s face, turned his head toward her, and said: “Daddy, look at me with your whole face.”

This is not an easy task in our world of “permanent partial attention.”

In Joe Vitale’s teleseminar with Noah St. John on April 15, 2010, Joe stated that you can turbocharge your life by spending fifteen minutes each day writing down what you are grateful for that has already happened (8 minutes) and what you are grateful for that is about to happen (7 minutes).

Test out this idea, and share your results with my blog.

According to William Arthur Ward:  “Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.”

One of the greatest sins is leaving words unspoken.  When you feel grateful for what another person has done for you, let them know.

Your words have the power to make someone’s day.

Look for opportunities every day to use your power, and discover all the things that you have been missing for which you can feel grateful.