Gratitude

Gratitude is a highly underestimated virtue. We go through the rigmarole of life without acknowledging or thanking life for the various gifts that it showers on us. We accept them as pure coincidences or just a matter of good luck. 

I think gratitude towards our loved ones is becoming a thing of the past. Somewhere we take them for granted and believe that they were just doing their role. We often forget that they did not simply do their roles mechanically; they also  ensured that we were made to feel special and gave us the warmth that we needed.

I was reintroduced to the concept of gratitude when I was reading a book on Positive Psychology. In the book they talk about "Naikan" a Japanese technique of reflection. The technique can be used on a daily basis. The word Naikan means inside looking or introspection.It is primarily based on 3 questions:

What have I received from...

What have I given to...

What troubles and difficulties have I caused to...

The purpose is to use these questions to help one bring focus to how one has contributed and how one's life has been enriched by the existing relationships and interactions that one may engage in on a daily basis or over an extended period of time.

Try using the technique and see how it impacts you.

Will do the next blog on guidelines to increase one's sense of gratitude.

The Theme

Wow! My last entry was in the beginning of January, which makes me think how fast the months have passed. Today I have decided to put aside all my laziness and instead channelize it in to writing an entry. Over the months the ideas have often come in but very rarely has the enthusiasm accompanied the idea and that's how lot of thoughts, insights were lost in the abyss.

Some weeks back, I was working with 2 clients regarding their personal concerns.The 2 clients who have different lives, different backgrounds told me their own stories, deliberated on the choices made and contemplated over their personal journeys. 

The fascinating bit was that they had an exactly common underlying theme. As I finished my sessions with them, the theme remained with me and I wondered how both of them were so similar yet so different. It was almost as if they were speaking the same language still what they meant was world apart. Both moving in a new direction and letting their theme guide them towards it. I wondered if their journeys would lead them through a common path and a common end.

As I ended the day, I wondered what the theme meant for me and how it affected my being.

New Year and Resolutions

For the last two days, ideas have been spinning in my head regarding a new blog entry. With time they germinated, and here is a new entry for the new year.

For me, the concept of the new year has assumed new meaning since the last few years. Earlier there were resolutions and plans on how to bring in the new year; now it's more symbolic. It's symbolic of newer beginnings, a time to introspect and a time to be grateful for the year that has gone by. Now it also symbolizes the time when my friends come back from the US, so it's time to reunite and write my yearly long mails to few people who have been special.

A part of me wonders if our new year resolutions are more steered towards attitude change (easier thought than done), rather than our actions. When someone says, "I won't smoke this year", maybe it's more about adopting a healthier lifestyle than just simply quit smoking. When a client says "This year, I shall think less", maybe he means that this year he will accept more and let go of extra emotional baggage.

It's amazing how these apparently simple sounding resolutions take a whole lot of effort to finally translate. It has more to do with the fact that changing our attitude is a long process and not just a knee jerk reaction. The desire to change needs to be intense and gradually the process of change takes shape.

So what's your new year resolution?

Happy New Year!