Appreciate What You Have

Do you remain sad sometimes? Do you feel frustrated that you do not have what you wanted in life? Do you feel jealous of others for the things they possess & you don't have? Do you feel disillusioned with your life sometimes? Have you lost something in life which you already had?

In your life you always want to achieve more & more but feel frustrated if you do not get it. If you have some money, you want more of it. If you have a house, you want a bigger one with more facilities in it. If you do not have a car, you want to have one. If you do have a car then you want a bigger & more luxurious one. We want to fulfill all of our dreams in life but feel depressed & frustrated if we are not able to achieve these. We do also feel frustrated if we lose something which we were already having. In fact, our mind is very fickle. It constantly hankers after the "Things of Desire" & feel sad, depressed when it's wishes are not fulfilled. Below verse of Bhagwat Gita tells about the fickle nature of our mind. As per that our mind is very restless, turbulent, obstinate and very strong & controlling it is more difficult than controlling the wind. Due to this fickle nature of our mind, it always demand & want more. Due to restless nature of mind we are not at peace with ourselves.

"chanchalam hi manah krishna
pramathi balavad drdham
tasyaham nigraham manye
vayor iva su-duskaram" (Bhagwat Gita: Chapter Six verse 34)

"Arjuna said: For the mind is restless, turbulent, obstinate and very strong, O Krishna, and to subdue it, I think, is more difficult than controlling the wind."

Now just see your present life as it is. Our basic problem is that we do not appreciate the positive aspects in our lives. Our nature is to ponder on the negatives & what we don't have in life. To us others grass always seem greener. In fact we should appreciate what we already have. That shall give you a strength that at least you have been able to achieve that much. Do not compare yourself with someone very rich & with much more facilities & resources than you. Just see how good you are from those who lay a life along roadside without even having a roof over there head. If you have a small house then be happy that at least you are having a roof over your head despite the fact that you're not yet living in the home of your dreams. Just appreciate, whatever, you have achieved in life till today. Just see that there are many who have not achieved even that in life & you are much better of than many many on this earth. All around you, there are many people who are less fortunate than yourself. So we should always appreciate & give thanks to God for what we have in life.

It is all right that we all want to be better in life than what we are today. It is all right that if we work hard in life, we can fulfill our dreams. But there is no reason to get depressed in life just comparing yourself with rich, resourceful persons & moaning that you do not have all that in life. We should not forget about our own limit and capacity.

So let's be grateful to God for whatever we have in life. If you are able to thank God for, whatever, He has given you in life, then also you shall appreciate what you have in life. We should always focus on the positives in life. So let us start appreciating what we have. Appreciate what you have achieved in life till now. Appreciate your own looks & body. Appreciate the house you live in. Appreciate that you & your family are having good food while there are many who are not just having that also. Appreciate your loved ones, your children. Appreciation of yourself shall bring confidence in you, it shall also bring peace & happiness in your family life.

Beautiful story:

Once a wealthy man took his son on a trip to the countryside, so that he could have his son see how poor life the country people live.

They stayed one day and one night in the home of a very humble farmer. At the end of the trip, when they were back home, the father asked his son, "What did you think of the trip?"

The son replied, "Very nice dad."

Then the father asked his son, "Did you notice how poor they were?"

The son replied, "Yes."

The father continued asking, "What did you learn?"

The son responded, "I learned that we have one dog in our house, and they have four.

And we have imported lamps in our garden . . . where they have the stars!

Also, we have a fountain in our garden, but they have a stream that has no end.

And our garden goes to the edge of our property. But they have the entire horizon as their back yard!"

At the end of the son's reply the father was speechless.

His son then said, "Thank you dad for showing me how poor we really are."

Isn't it true that all depends on the lens you use to see life?

One can ask himself what would happen if we give thanks to God for what we have in life instead of always asking for more.

Let us learn to appreciate what you have in life. Wealth is all in one's point of view.

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