Today, I just feel thankful.
It was a very productive day, and by the time it was 6, I had completed whatever I had set out to do, and more. But instead of the usual flush of excitement, I felt a calming feeling of thankfulness.
Thankfulness. A feeling that we usually get after a crisis is resolved. A sickness cured, a solution for an issue or worry that may be plaguing us, big or small – when something bad is done away with, we do feel thankful.
We mostly pray when something bad is about to happen, or has already happened, and then thank God once we are back to comfort again.
But how often do we feel thankful when things are good, or even normal?
Normal. A very relative term. Things are good – even more relative. What’s great in one part of the world may seem basic in another – comforts, amenities, luxuries – all are relative. So is money, purchasing power, and other material pursuits that we aim for. We find ourselves yearning for a bigger house, a better car, more expensive clothes and belongings – and forget that someone else below in the pecking order of things may be yearning for what we currently have (and consider basic). And it goes on, all the way up to the top 1%, and all the way down to the bottom 10%.
No one is content. Everyone of us just wants more.
And so, sometimes, when you have a good day, think of the troubles being faced by the vast majority of humanity across the world. That you have access to the internet to read this blog, in itself, puts you far above the lower rungs of society who struggle for the basics – food to eat, water to drink, shelter and yes, security.
A small minority of us have won the lottery of life, just by being born in the right place. A few rise above their circumstances and move up through the bad hand that they have been dealt, but that’s just a few. The rest remain where they are, unable to break through.
You have food on the table, running water and sanitation, a decent job and security in the absence of conflict – that’s enough to be thankful every single day. The rest is gravy.
When I was young, I used to hear about successful people being humble and feeling humility and I used to wonder why. After all, if they have been successful after a lot of struggle, they ought to be proud and boisterous about it, I thought. Many many years later, I now know.
The success after a sustained struggle opens your eyes to the fact that there are others still out there – struggling, working the same or even more, and yet not being able to make it. What you have with you now, could easily have not been there. It is this realisation that makes one thankful – I was chosen not because I was the best, but because of many factors that worked in my favor, including luck.
And all that came together to bring to me the beautiful people and things that I am currently surrounded by – my family, friends, possessions and everything else. And I am thankful for every bit of it.
As I said a small prayer in the evening, I closed my eyes and thanked God for all that he has given me, little or more is not important. That he has given me in itself is a humbling feeling. And I felt at peace after.
Think about it:)