Page 8 - Power of Gratitude

Page 5

Showing gratitude does not stop at reciprocating a good gesture to

others. There is actually no law anywhere in the world that states that
you should not or cannot cherish yourself, your being. In fact, if it has

and can be proven that the power of gratitude resides within, it follows
then too that the process begins with self. It is not gratitude if the impact

is not first felt by self. If there is ever a thing to discover in people who
have cultivated gratitude as their way of life, there’s a probability that

such individuals are for every reason, grateful for whom they are. Isn’t
it illogical if one loves others while hating on oneself? It becomes pretty

easy to love others if we first are fond of loving and cherishing the kind of
persons we are. If only we could realize altogether that the most heinous

of crimes committed by humans to fellow humans begin with our lack of
love and gratitude to self. What happens to an individual who, for some

reason, pick up a knife or whatever weapon it is he finds and boom, he
cuts live out of another human? What precisely do you think is wrong

with him? The answer is not farfetched. That individual who embarks on
such a cruel mission certainly is lacking in one thing - Gratitude to self.

The world will no doubt become a home for monsters and scavengers if
we choose not to value ourselves. Be mindful not to substitute this for

“one another.” Gratitude begins from us to one another.

The question then will be, how can I show gratitude to self? There are,

of course, more than a thousand ways we can cherish and be appreciative
of ourselves. First, we can begin with our body. We may never ever

understand the power of gratitude if we do not start to see that our body
is a gift that needs to be nurtured, treasured, and cared for. As simple

or old as it may sound, regular bathing and oiling of the body, healthy
eating, including keeping good hygiene are some ways we can express

gratitude to self. When we do all these, oblivious to us, we are in the
real sense, showing gratitude to God for the precious gift of ‘body’ that

was given to us. The gratitude within is that feeling of content and peace
we have as individuals that resonates with the positive energy to doing

everything practically possible to avoid getting hurt or being inflicted
with the slighted scratch of injury.