It could have been worse!!

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

I have a friend that something terrible happened to. But, you could never even think she was going through something because of the grace with which she carried herself. Shocking to me was, how she still managed to smile and be Thankful. She looked at me and said: You didn’t lose anything. So what excuse do you have not to be grateful? To be honest, I thought she was nuts but she definitely taught me a life lesson……

I always say I’m a realist. Therefore, when something bad happens, I focus on it and atimes too much. So I forget to be grateful for the many things that didn’t go wrong. I still consider myself to be a realist but following some circumstances, I actually found you can alter your reality. Dwelling on the limes in life is you lingering on the thorn under your feet. Instead of working towards getting away from the thorn, you are gradually bleeding. The Limes are there but it so depends on you to make lemonades out of them. Not been grateful doesn’t really seem like been realistic but, it could have been worse. A man who sees no reason to smile and say “Thank you” is like a dog that keeps going in circles and ends up right where it began.

When something happens, speculate on the worst case scenarios and find it within yourself to be grateful. Some situations honestly doesn’t deserve you to be grateful but I think that’s when it’s most important to be grateful. I cope with situations like this by thinking; what is done is done. It’s disgusting putting your vomit back in your mouth and it’s that discouraging dwelling on the past instead of working on the future. I have learnt the hard way that sometimes when life turns its back on you, it’s actually giving you a blessing in disguise. Of course that’s dependant on you. There needs to be a realization that clay needs to pass through the furnace for it to be hardened and you need to be grateful life was kind enough to let you have experiences that will rebrand you if you let it. After all, “you can’t rise up from the flames without first being burned to the ground”.

Pro-life supporters against abortion would argue the foetus is “a life with potentials”. So we all have potentials. Potentials that unfortunately, might never be realized if you don’t have a clear mind. That’s where happiness and contentment (not complacency. Contentment means you are satisfied with what you have although you will still pursue your dreams. It takes a grateful heart to say thank you for all he has no matter how small ) comes in. gratitude leads to true happiness. David Steindl- Rast once said; “In daily life, we must see that it is not happiness that makes us grateful, but gratefulness that makes us happy”. Happiness and contentment are direct products of gratitude and in turn, success is a direct product of these. Therefore, indirectly gratitude leads to success. That’s why the importance of gratitude can’t be overemphasized. Because a grateful person like my friend, sees the problem but is still thankful. She doesn’t ask for pity or tell her problems to the world because really what will the world do? Tell her “sorry” and make her remember what she is trying to forget.

 Gratefulness opens your eyes to the solutions, helps you strategise and helps you remember it could have been worse. Some people will kill to be in your state that you think is so bad. You think all your plans were thrown away in the dustbin, think of those with no plans or means. But, yet still remember to smile and go on with life like the fire is not burning them. Helen Keller refused to let life grind her to pieces because she was grateful she even had a life to live. Practise makes perfect. So be grateful for the small things ( be it good or bad. Be grateful for the terrible boyfriend and friend. They served their purpose) and being grateful for the big things will come to you naturally. NEVER FORGET IT COULD HAVE BEEN WORSE! So thank you Lord because my life didn’t end with the night.