Most of us have grown up with parents who taught us to be grateful. They told us to be thankful for good food on the table, the roof over our head and for our good health. As a child, you probably didn't pay much attention to gratitude. I know I didn't. If I wanted the latest pair of trainers, the 'you should be grateful that you have trainers to wear' or 'think about the people who don't have any feet' perspective didn't pack a big enough punch to drum the point home.
Sure, I had enough to feel sorry for a person without feet, But in my world I didn't run into enough of them to make me realize how lucky I was to have my own. I rarely saw their frustrations and I didn't feel their pain. So that line of thought didn't work for me. I took my feet for granted. What's more, I still wanted a new pair of trainers.
Now I have a better understanding of how the mind works, I can see the importance of being thankful. You see, when you appreciate something, now turn your attention to it. And, as I now know, what you pay attention to conditions your thinking, creates your perceptions and controls your experience of reality. From this perspective, an attitude of gratitude certainly makes sense. It keeps your attention focused on what you have and less on what you want. When you make it a habit to fix your attention on what you have, life becomes full - you feel fulfilled.
Often we don't make complete use of the things we won. We constantly chase what's new even when what we possess doesn't need replacing. But that doesn't matter to us. We must have the latest, newest and best. But if we don't enjoy what we already have, how on earth are we going to be happier with more?
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