The simple act of being thankful can work wonders for your mind!

Scientific studies show the benefit of gratitude for mind and wellness. However, being grateful doesn’t come naturally to most of us, especially for the thing we often neglect. Let us learn and make this a habit.

As I walk down to the parking lot each morning, I see a guard sitting on a chair in the dimly lit basement. I also see an old gentleman walking down each evening when I go on a jog. Seldom did I understand the importance of people who are ‘just there’ in life till the lockdown came. And with it, the time to think that how people and things we neglect often make our life better.

It is not before one walks the insecurity and melancholy of an empty street each evening that one realizes the value of an old gentleman passing through every day. There are many things that impact our mind and body, but we seldom care about them. It was when I started acknowledging the guard and giving him a casual nod that I felt that the guy started responding before I did each day. Now, I had a friend sitting as I passed down the parking lot every morning, rather than a stranger!

Whenever we connect we build relations, and building relations makes us happier! However, the best out of these connects is the one of gratitude. The one where we see that what we have obtained rather than what we have given. The benefits of gratitude, or an acknowledgement of what we have obtained improves a sense of connect with our surroundings – not only people, but also the events and situations and see them in a positive light. However, the practice of gratitude is often elusive in the beginning. Once learnt and internalized it is equally gratifying and refreshing. In our future posts we will touch on how gratitude helps and how to practice it.