Yes, there are many times when we will feel a great amount of gratitude for the things in our lives. Perhaps we have worked very hard with the goal of being able to purchase that dream car, boat, home, purse, or whatever item that may be, big or small. That is a great feeling! And if that goal is simply for our own pleasure, that is a perfect goal.
However, we do want to be sure we are not focusing on just finding gratitude on things that make us feel better off than others. There are times when people mistake the “living up to the Joneses” as the measure of their gratitude. We should all be able to find gratitude within who we are because of who we are not just because we have something others do not or even because we have achieved what others have. Not that we cannot be grateful for the fruits of our labor, most of us work really hard to get what we want. But being able to determine why this item makes us happy and fills us with gratitude is a key distinction.
Take for instance, a boat owner, we do not own a boat, but I can see the happiness of people that do own a boat in their pictures. I cannot say what they are feeling on the inside, but from the outside, it looks like they are grateful simply because they are genuinely enjoying the experience. It certainly looks fun, and those sunset pictures are awesome! I must admit, I am a huge fan of sunsets and love the pictures.
If an item that you have worked hard for makes you happy just for having, then absolutely bask in the feeling of gratitude for having achieved that goal of that purchase. The danger comes when having an item makes you happy simply because you have something someone else does not. This is really a false gratitude and the more you find gratitude in this way, the more you always be searching and never finding any satisfaction.
On the flip side, the sharing and seeing pictures of other individuals’ gratitude can lead to possible envy and jealousy which we have to be careful not to sink into. If you are looking at pictures of someone else’s gratitude, try to share in their joy. Yes, there are those out there that choose to share simply to brag, but most are just enjoying themselves. It is ok to find gratitude within the gratitude of others. This is how it spreads.
Sometimes we all get sucked into feeling that being grateful for intrinsic items is somehow the right way to show being grateful and sharing experiences or other items that we are grateful for having in their lives is not. We have a tendency to not share in some items or to have a negative feeling toward those that do share, and as a result our sharing of gratitude has become stilted. There is no right or wrong way to share gratitude. Being grateful for your life means all parts of your life, good and bad. If you are looking at someone else’s pictures and allowing negative thoughts to enter your mind of “oh, they’re just bragging” or “how come I don’t have that I work hard too” then you are putting yourself into a negative cycle. Try instead to focus on how happy that person seems and be grateful for them. They have spread their gratitude by sharing, let if fill you!
With that being said, it is important not to get caught up in thinking you have to have what someone else has in order to find that same gratitude. Gratitude is FREE!!! No purchase necessary and available to each and every one of us. It is at our fingertips; we just have to reach out and grab it.
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