Seeing through the lens of Gratitude

Afternoons have always been my favorite time of day. It allows me to see the sky's vivid colors, the clouds, and the trees around me. Lately, I've been so stressed about the things I need to do that I never get the chance to go out of my room and enjoy those afternoons. I'm just preoccupied with my responsibilities. I'm just sitting in front of the screen all day.

I've been contemplating why this is happening, and I've realized that I have become too fixated on doing what needs to be done. My fixation on those things consumed my time to become grateful and appreciate the little things in life. I've realized that being grateful can make my day better because gratitude allows us to see the beauty hidden behind this world's worries. Having a posture of gratitude will let us see the things we usually overlook.

Consider the lilies

There is a verse in the new testament where Jesus urges us to consider the lilies, look at how they grow, and appreciate their beauty. The lilies might be a little thing, but they can teach us a lot about gratitude and the profoundness of God's love for us.

Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither labor nor spin; but I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. Luke 12:27

Taking our time to pause and consider the lilies will allow us to see the work of God. Each moment of the day, we are worried and preoccupied with the responsibilities we have. Jesus is urging us to consider the lilies, look at the ephemeral beauty to learn something eternal. Though we live in a fleeting world, taking our time to pause and look at something that won't last is still meaningful. It allows us to realize that we should never push ourselves beyond our capacity to attain an unreachable standard of beauty.

Having the posture of gratitude

Being thankful for the little things can go a long way. Often we focus on the big things happening in our lives, but all those big things are just the product of you doing the little things.

Suppose you start your day being thankful for waking up in the morning, grateful for having a delicious beverage, and grateful for the birds chirping and the wind blowing the trees' leaves. I assure you, you will have a better day than if you just go through it without being grateful. Those little things can make up your day, and wearing a lens of gratitude will allow you to see the things you could be thankful for, no matter how small.

Appreciate the people around you

Often, I struggle to put into words how thankful I am for the people around me. I say "Thank you," and that's it, but I realized that even my simple "thank you" can go a long way because when my friends express their gratitude towards me, I appreciate it a lot.

Even though I have a lot more to learn when expressing my gratitude to other people, I urge you to say to your friends how grateful you are for their lives. One little nudge or pat on the back can mean so much to them in these trying times.

Being grateful is one of the easiest things we can do to make our lives and the people around us better, but it is often overlooked. Be thankful for just one thing every day, and you would see the beauty in this worried-filled world.