Signs of gratitude are littered all over this month.  In fact, as I was driving my daughter to school this morning her school sign read, “Give thanks for what you have.”  The theme of gratitude isn’t new to most of us and isn’t the exclusive property of November.  Gratitude is never out of season and delivers powerful benefits to those who make it a regular practice.  Since it is the topic of the month, let’s underscore it and delve into its riches.  What is gratitude, what are its benefits, and how do we practice it?

What Is Gratitude?

The dictionary says that gratitude is thankful appreciation for what someone receives. Thich Nhat Hanh, a Buddhist monk, says gratitude is a, “promise (that) I will enjoy every minute of the day that is given to me to live.” He teaches in the Seventh Mindfulness Training, that, “Real happiness depends primarily on our mental attitude and not on external conditions, and that we can live happily in the present moments simply by remembering that we already have more than enough conditions to be happy.”  In Hebrew gratitude is: hakarat hatov, which means recognizing the good.  What all these sources agree on is that gratitude is seeing and giving thanks for exactly what we have. 

There is a story about a famous violinist Itzhak Perlman that demonstrates gratitude in action.  Perlman was set to give a concert one night.  Perlman had polio as a child and, as a result, wore braces on both legs and walked with two crutches.  The evening he was to give a concert, he crossed the stage slowly and set himself in a chair to play.  As he started to play the first measures of the song, his violin string popped.  He could have stopped, focused on the missing string, and worked to replace what was missing.  Instead, he took a beat and began to play where he had left off.  He only had three strings to play his part with.  He was able to adjust to three strings by moving notes to other strings and rearranging some of the music on the spot to hold the piece together.  When he was finished, the audience cheered wildly.  “They knew they had been witness to an extraordinary display of human skill and ingenuity.”  Perlman lifted his bow and spoke, “You know, sometimes it is the artist’s task to find out how much beautiful music you can still make with what you have left”  (Morinis).

Making beautiful music with what you have left is the crux of gratitude.  In all times we have choices to see the good that is present and use it to create joy.  Life isn’t easy.  Balancing all the ups and downs and demands that life brings can be so overwhelming.  We lose loved ones.  We lose jobs.  We don’t have what we want.  We aren’t where we want to be.  In all of these circumstances, good does exist we just have to choose to see it.

What are the Benefits of Gratitude?

1. Increased optimism.

Research says that those people who focus on what they have instead of what they lack, feel better about their lives and experience an increase in optimism.   By paying attention to things going well, we can accentuate feelings of happiness and shift our attention from toxic emotions like resentment and envy.