What Are You Really Thankful For?
November 28, 2011 21 Comments
Take a good look at your life. Realize how many things in your life you take for granted. If you are reading this blog right now, you probably have shelter over your head, food readily available and no worry about the basic needs to sustain life. How many times have you looked at your life and truly appreciated all that you have instead of what you don’t?
Many of us focus on the things we don’t have but would like to have. Maybe a fast car, the new big screen TV or a huge mansion with more room than you can imagine. This is called materialism, and if you are a materialistic person, you will attach emotions to physical objects. When you have them, you feel good. When you don’t, you experience negative emotions and feelings that will affect your overall well-being.
What value does a physical object really have? Money and cool toys are nice, but are they really a necessity to live a happy life? If you don’t attach emotions to objects, you can never feel bad if you don’t have them.
If you detach yourself from your physical possessions, you can enjoy life regardless if you have them or not. You can enjoy living in the moment not worrying about what you have your what you don’t have. You will be able to appreciate what you have and not feel bad about what you don’t.
With this in mind, what are you really thankful for? For me, I am thankful that I have a shirt on my back. I am thankful I have a supporting family that has provided me with shelter, food, and a positive outlook on life.
I am thankful I have the opportunity to spread that positivity to everyone I meet.
I am thankful I have the opportunity to live life without worrying about where I will find my next meal.
I used to take a lot of these things for granted.
As I grew up, I began to realize how much in my life I didn’t appreciate. I always wanted new better things without realizing that what I already have is sufficient enough.
I have been able to detach myself from physical objects, most importantly money. I now feel the same exact way if I have $0 in my bank account or $25,000.
It doesn’t matter, I realize I can earn more money by working harder and I have so many other things in life to appreciate and be thankful for.
One of the biggest things I value in life is freedom.
Freedom to do whatever I want, whenever I want, without having to listen to anybody else.
While money can help you attain more freedoms, it isn’t the only necessary tool. If you can live your life on your own terms without any outside influence, you can truly be free.
What is it that you truly want to do with your life? Are you going after that goal or are you allowing outside influence to deter you from achieving it? Are people telling you that you can’t do it? Is it because no one else has done it before? Well that is great, because we are all unique creative individuals. We have the ability to create whatever we want, and most importantly create our own reality and the life we truly want to live.
Just because something hasn’t been done before doesn’t mean it is impossible to achieve. 100 years ago did you think we would be flying metal tubes across the globe? Did we think we would have an infinite source of information accessible at light speed (the internet)?
The most innovative inventors of the recent century didn’t believe anything else except their desired outcome. They knew there would be set backs and failures and people telling them what they “couldn’t” do. Do you think they cared? Absolutely not. They were willing to take on the challenge and wouldn’t ever stop until they achieved what they wanted.
Edison is said to have failed at making the light bulb thousands of times before he actually was successful.
How many people do you think gave up on the first or second try? Maybe even the 100th try?
For Edison, there was no other outcome except what he believed. He didn’t believe anything else except that he was going to achieve what he set out to do.
If you begin to live your life with this mentality, you can achieve whatever you can imagine. If you can imagine it, you can make it a reality.
Every idea originates in the mind, and if you have the courage, you can create it in your physical reality. It doesn’t happen instantly, and it certainly takes a lot of hard work but nothing is impossible unless you decide it is.
Be thankful for what you already have and take nothing for granted. Work towards achieving your goals without listening to anyone else. Make the DECISION to never quit.
Work towards making the world a better place for everyone and you will be happy with the result. Treat everyone as you would like to be treated.
Spread positive energy and positive things will happen in your life.
If you start to work towards this mentality, you will notice tremendous results that will inspire you to go even further.
There is absolutely no one stopping you from going as far as you wish to go.
You create your own reality, why not make it amazing?
Words of wisdom said passionately.
Nancy
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I’d should test with you here. Which is not one thing I often do! I enjoy reading a post that may make individuals think. Also, thanks for allowing me to remark!
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What are our values? What makes life valuable? What is the place we call “the real world?” These are questions that we frequently ignore in our busy work to home daily routine. I like the fact that you suggest paying attention to these forgotten focuses and how when we do they can change our life for the positive.
Janr Ssor
Indeed, our societies are built along the lines of acquiring new shiny metals? what the fuck? who cares? why can we just love and respect each other equally regardless of who has more shiny shit? haha 🙂
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Wise words, thank you for sharing them. 🙂
The realization of true freedom and intense feeling of presence and inner power comes when you actually have no shelter/food/money. (according to my personal experience)
Then you realize you have nothing to lose and start appreciating and enjoying the moment as it is. Being open to the universe creates powerful experiences straight away, all the “problems” are solved within days, hours and even minutes. We just need to let go of social conditioning, being brainwashed and seeing ourselves as limited by circumstances….
“You create your own reality, why not make it amazing?”- that should be our everyday motto indeed.
I am glad I have realized how much social conditioning and brainwashing I have been exposed to. I have had the opportunity to discard most of the things I was conditioned to believe at a young age. It has been a truly awakening experience, and I want to share it with everyone! Thanks for stopping by! 😉
Yeah, if everyone would just put aside 5 minutes out of their relatively long life to think about this important topic, they might realized where their happiness can be found.
Yet a lot of us just don’t even bother to attempt to learn anything about the subject. I feel sorry for them!
Oh man, great write, and it’s funny you write about materialism, because just recently I’ve been watching this documentary, “the century of the self” and it sheds some light on the psychology behind materialism in America. Awesome Blog man, and thanks for following, I’m following for sure. spread positivity.
Thanks I appreciate it. Positive energy is infectious.
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