CAN WE ACHIEVE GRATEFULNESS IN A CONSUMERIST SOCIETY?

Hey People!!

So to answer the question, YES, WE CAN! *Insert Obama Voice*

Gratitude is the warm or deep appreciation we have for kindness or benefits received. 

Let's not confuse this with indebtedness which is the feeling of debt or owing. It does not necessarily carry a feeling of joy and freedom but a sense of need or obligation. It is often associated with guilt because there is this need to repay or to return.

There are two qualities of gratefulness :

1. Appreciation : Recognizing that something is valuable to you, which has absolutely nothing to do with its monetary worth
2. Gratis: Freely given to us

We live in a consumerist society whose main focus is what we do not have or what others have and we don't which ultimately leaves little to no room for gratitude which is the appreciation of what we already have.

One sunny afternoon, I got  home early from uni! Class was cancelled... Oh happy day!

So I thought.... 

I went to bed to take a long nap to compensate for waking up early! I was yawning like crazy ...If i tell you I opened my mouth so much I got a freaking Jaw Lock would you believe me? 😂😂😂

It's funny as hell right now but that day it wasn't! I had my mouth open like 

 for more than 4 hours as I waited for my mum to come get me, to going from hospital to hospital with saliva dripping from my mouth and doctors telling us they do not know how to address the lock jaw! SMH

Perfect example of siku mrefu I tell you! My younger bro saw me... you could see the confusion on his face. He didn't know whether to laugh, because I looked ridiculous with my mouth open like that or to cry, because tears of despondency were cascading down my cheeks (OMG! Finally a place I can use these phrases, haha!)caused by the serious migraine I was getting due to straining my facial muscles! Wah!

Long story short, we got a doctor at Aga Khan who knew exactly what to do! So he injected me with numbing meds, put six such like sticks inside each side of my mouth, pulled down my lower jaw with them and pushed it back! Jesus! I don't know what I did to deserve such a small mouth but please save me from that kind of pain again! 

So when he chucked the sticks, a normal person would close their mouth, right? But no, I still kept staring at them with my mouth ajar... the nurse had to tap me abit to tell me to shut my mouth now! You can't blame me for liking the free flow of air people! hahaha!!! It is called the power of adjustment!

Soon as I got out of the consultation room, the first thing my dad asks is, "na mdomo yako inahang aje hivyo lakini?"  I laughed so hard I almost went back for round two!

So where am I going with this long story? Some things we happen to take for granted are honestly things we should really be grateful to God for i.e. 

• the ability to swallow saliva and close our mouths with ease which I swear is a big deal! Take it from someone who has drooled like a baby in their adult life!
• the gift of  good health, 
• the gift of family; and the most important one, 
• THE GIFT OF LIFE ITSELF!

“Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has plenty; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some.” —Charles Dickens

If we take life to be a glass for example ... there are days we feel full to the brim until we are overflowing, some days we feel half full or half empty depending on the optimism levels that day and sometimes we feel just plain ol' empty. On days we feel less than full, and to make things worse people around us are waving champagne glasses (funny how most often than not it's always a facade), all we ever think about is how quickly we can fill the glass. Not only for ourselves but also to be like everyone else.

What we fail to understand is that, the moments of "great-fullness" are neither consistent nor assured.Moments that bring actual happiness and contentment are those that are spent being grateful FOR HAVING THE ACTUAL GLASS! So when you are content with the glass,the level of the content no matter how much or how little, will not faze you because your happiness is emanating from a deeper source which is choosing to focus on the bigger picture ( Gratitude for the gift of Life). At the end of the day, the contents you'd like to fill the glass with will have nowhere to be put if there is no existence of the glass.

The society has made us feel like we can never just have enough... there is always something better that needs to be purchased be it a phone ( I don't think ya'll really realize how Samsung and Iphone manufacturers are profiting from us always not being content), a weave, a car etc. for us to feel fulfilled and complete. What we forget is that there will always be a newer model ... so when will our thirst for more ever end? It's an endless cycle!

Grab a cup of whatever tickles your fancy, sit down and realize how rich you are beyond words because of all that you have. Shift your focus from life's cruelty and pain and be grateful for all the small mercies!💖💖

For all those that would like to try something new, I found a 6 step method which we could all use to practice gratitude:

      1.      Choose a partner

            Choose someone with whom you are comfortable and start the gratitude practice.

2.     Commit

Commit to do the practice on the set day and time even when you have every reason under the sun not to do it.

As much as you can hardly sum up the energy to shift into gratitude after a bad experience or a crappy day, just force yourself to begin.

3.     Begin

Sit your ass down with a pen and paper if you wanna be old school or at your computer and start, “I am grateful for….”

It may not come easily at that point but just be patient. Surrender to the moment. The words will come.

4.     Choose a set time/day

This is to ensure you both stay committed to the task. This could be daily, weekly... do not try to extend it too long.

5.     Share your gratitude

Send it to your partner. You should keep each other on toes. Partnering up will give you a sense of responsibility and it will push you on days when it just seems too hard.

6.     Allow yourself to be human

Grumble if you must, haha, as long as you get yourself to do it. If y’all happen to miss a day, you and your partner may choose to play catch up or just let those days go and starting where you left off.

Don't forget to make it fun for the two of you while you are at it!

Spread Love and Light💋

A Learning-To-Be-Grateful Njeri

So to initiate the gratitude process, leave a comment on something you are grateful for. I'll start:

I am grateful for my readers who take time out of their day to read this blog.  All the support and love y'all have shown me is amazing. Thank you very much💝

I am grateful for the ability to yawn in peace even though I have to put my chin close to my chest to control how much of my mouth I open, hehe! It's way better than hanging and the migraines.

I am grateful for all that I am learning as I write posts for this blog. It truly is a growth journey. Thank you to all those who told me to go for it. Best idea ever.

Now it's your turn. Write as many as you like.