Grateful for the Seasons

 

“It's not possible to experience constant euphoria, but if you're grateful, you can find happiness in everything.”

Pharrell Williams

    Nature is very predictable when it comes to its seasons. If it is hot and muggy outside and it has been that way for a few weeks then you know that you are most likely in the summer season. If the typically green leaves are turning orange to brown before falling to the ground that you can tell you are in Fall season. If it is near or below 32 degrees each day then winter is here. Lastly if it has been raining consistently for the past few weeks causing grass to grow green and flowers to bloom you are in the season of spring. As easy as it is to know what season we are in it is just as easy to know that each season will not last. Therefore whether you enjoy the current season or longing for another you should always be grateful. That is because if you love the season you can be grateful for it now. If you hate the season you can be grateful that it will pass and another is on the way.

You Have a Choice

     Being grateful is a choice. It is a choice that has been written about and practiced for thousands of years. Whether it is ancient times or today the impact of being grateful is always the same. When you are grateful for something you have decided that you want to see the good in that something. For many things that you are grateful for you can easily see the good in it. If you are grateful for your vision it is easy to see the good in being able to see the beauty of this world. If you are grateful for the love from another person it is easy to see the goodness of receiving love. If you are grateful for the roof over your head that you have the privilege to sleep under every night it is easy to see the goodness of not being homeless. In many of those cases the choice to be grateful is an easy one to make. Unfortunately because of that ease many people stop and only choose to be grateful for what is easy.

     Yet there are many who have mastered the power of gratitude by choosing to see the goodness in what is easy and what is not so easy. These people have made the choice to see the goodness in it all. These people should be commended because they have decided not to follow the masses and see things in a different light. They understand that a divorce can be a very difficult thing to get through but they will find something in that situation to be grateful for. They understand that losing a job and being unemployed is extremely tough but they will find something in that situation to be grateful for. They will understand that having a terminal illness is not something they ever wanted to face but they will something about that to be grateful for. It is both an art and a science to see the goodness in all situations. These people have chosen to master the ability to practice both the art and the science.

Think of Things in Seasons

   If you have difficulty mastering that ability try to think of things in seasons. When it is 100 degrees outside and your air conditioner has lost all of its coolant you are not a happy person. You are uncomfortable having to sit and sweat in your own home. You are also uncomfortable with the possibility of having to shell out a large sum of money to fix your air conditioner. Yet because it is summer you know that fall is on its way. You know that this uncomfortable situation can’t last. You know that you are in a season now and a new season is on the way. For that you can be grateful. After your air conditioning problem is resolved you can also go on to have a great summer. You can go swimming in the pool or head to your closest beach. You can have dinner on the popular rooftop restaurant and delightfully enjoy the views of the city. If you love summer weather you still have the chance to enjoy as much of it as possible.

     Enjoying the summer season will come in handy at some point during the fall as well. When you find yourself having to rake up dozens of bags of leaves just so you can see your yard again you can look back and be grateful for the fun you had in the summer. When all the leaves fall off the trees making the view look bland and incomplete you can look back at the beauty you saw just a few weeks ago and be grateful for that. When winter comes and enough snow falls from the sky to make the roads unsafe to drive you can look forward to the upcoming spring. You can be grateful that eventually the sun will come out and melt the snow so the roads will again be safe to drive. I’m sure you can think of some similar situations related to spring. Hopefully now you get the picture. You can always make the choice to be grateful for a past season or a future season.

Situations Come and Go

     Just as the seasons of nature come and go so will the situations you face in life. The only difference is your situations will not be as predictable as spring, summer, fall and winter.   You can’t predict when you will have trouble at work. You can’t predict when you will have trouble in your relationships. You can’t predict when your health will be pushed to the brink. You can’t predict when things just won’t go your way. Yet all of these things are bound to happen at some point in life. You will have your seasons of failure just as you will have your seasons of success. To get the most out of life you should master the art and science of being grateful in both of those seasons.

     Look for things to be grateful for when there is trouble at work and things seemed to be headed in the wrong direction. You can choose to be grateful to add more experience to your resume once you solve the issue and get things back on track. You can be grateful for the wakeup call because you did not realize you have been going through the motions for the past few months. You can be grateful for the opportunity to rethink the way you have been working to see if there is a need for change. You can be grateful for the strength and determination you know you have within you to get through this season. You can also be grateful that this trouble has enlightened you to move on to better and/or bigger opportunities. You can be grateful that you work on a strong team and know that you wouldn’t want to go through these times with any other team. There are so many things you can be grateful for in this situation if you just make the choice to look for them.

   Finding something to be grateful for in any season will not change the season. Whatever you are going through you are going to have to go through it. A magic wand does not exist that can instantly make a difficult situation go away. Yet there is great power in finding something to be grateful for in all situations. When harnessed that power can drive you through the situation in the most effective way possible. That power can change the outcome. That power can speed up the progress. That power can reduce the wear and tear on your body that accompanies loads of stress. That power can build new relationships that didn’t exist before the situation. That power can change perception of you when people see how successfully you act in the situation. That power can build you up so that when the next season comes you are more capable of handling it. Just making the choice to practice gratitude can access all of that power.

Here’s How You Do It

   To put this into practice think about a situation you are in right now that isn’t going exactly the way you want it to go. First understand that this is a season and a new season is waiting to come into play. Now think of the things that you can be grateful for in this situation. You may not be grateful for the struggle but you can be grateful for the journey.   No matter how bad the situation is it is not 100% bad. There are things that you can be grateful for if you take the time to explore and find them. To harness the most power take a few minutes and write down the things that you are grateful for in the situation. After you write these things down in your journal they are now planted into your subconscious mind. You have planted seeds that are the fuel to help you power through the situation itself. You are responsible for the outcomes of your life. Therefore you are responsible for the outcome of this current situation. Take control of the situation and take action. Choose to be grateful and you will power through the situation getting the best results possible.

     This is your life and you refuse to not get the most out of it. Seasons will come and go. Knowing this you should be prepared to handle every situation that is on its way whether good or bad. The best way to handle any situation is to be armed with the tools that will help you get through it. The tool of choice today is gratitude. It is a tool that has proven its worth over the thousands of years and it will prove that same worth for thousands of years to come. Take action now to plant the seeds in your mind that will be the fuel to power you any season. Decide to Be Grateful and see the good in every situation. Trust yourself to find it and you will. You are the master of your destiny and that is something you should be grateful for.  As always I wish you the best and remind you to enjoy the journey.

With Gratitude,

Drew