Deb reminds us that qualified thankfulness may sound like true gratitude, but it’s really a poor substitute of watered-down complaining.
‘Well, it’s not been a great day, but at least I’m not starving and living in a cardboard shack.’
That’s not gratitude. It might be something you are glad about, and it might seem like a positive thought, but it’s not gratitude. Gratitude is not based on looking outward to other circumstances, but rather gives thanks for what is already right in front of you.
When I am thankful that ‘at least I’m not starving’ or ‘at least I’m both my legs are working’ or ‘at least I don’t have cancer’ what I am unintentionally saying is that I am happy because I have not suffered those things. Gratitude is something different. It’s being happy for what you do have, not being happy that you’ve avoided something you don’t like…Read the rest at This Fleeting Moment.
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