I hear people use the phrase “I’ve mastered gratitude.” and I think, “Well, I haven’t.” At first, I thought there was something amiss in my thinking. After all, isn’t gratitude the baseline for abundance/happiness/fulfillment, really everything? How is it possible that I haven’t “mastered” gratitude?
Like most reflections, the answer is directly related to your frame of reference or perception. In our current modern perspective, gratitude is dynamically opposed to growth/progress or the desire to improve ones circumstances in any form. If you are grateful, you are accepting of what you have, exactly the way it is. In other words, gratitude is the opposite of intentional change. Intentional change and emotional dissonance is the basis of our growth and learning as an individual, so how could I be grateful if I value learning?
But what if we frame gratitude a different way? What if gratitude is understanding the value of the experiences, people, nature and resources in your life? In other words, gratitude is understanding the value of your individual life experience.
You can certainly understand the value of something while maintaining the idea of intentional change. An individual experience does not last forever, but that doesn’t mean you don’t value it, both in the moment and afterward. People move in and out of your life on their own journeys, but that doesn’t mean you aren’t grateful for the time you spent together. Anyone who has endeared a hard winter, knows the experience of being excited for spring. That doesn’t mean you don’t see the beauty in snow covered mountains. You can even see the value in change as a new opportunity.
Let’s go back to the idea of “mastering gratitude”. Gratitude is a force. It’s an energy. It’s not a certificate of completion on your wall. You don’t “master” gratitude. You walk with it. You engage with it. You allow it to become part of who you are. If you think you have “mastered” gratitude, then you don’t understand gratitude.
As you move forward in your journey, I encourage you to see the value in each experience, every person you meet, the natural world around you and the resources in your life. I encourage you to walk with gratitude.