From Over the Hill: Thankfullness by Peter Bloch-Hansen
So, happy New Year!! It actually could be one, despite all the world’s worrying developments, most of which, looked at
with a hard eye, are foolishness, born of fear, ego and greed. My analysis is way over-simplified, of course, but look into any issue deeply enough, and you will see that our human problems are created by ourselves. So? The Great Teacher said that love would guide us into truth and truth would let us live free of all these troubles. Sounds, nice but …. Yeah, the but. Why is it so hard, for even the well-off to be happy, to live a satisfying and fulfilling life? Why can it be so hard to overcome life’s hard knocks? Why is it so hard to find out who we are, to know what to do with our lives, to find answers to life’s most important questions? And why is it so hard to find and sustain love? Though I’m no Great Teacher, I’ve found something that helps -- thankfulness; simple, but not always easy; free but it can cost a lot; a something that approaches these problems from underneath, where their causes lie. What? Really? Am I some kind of nut? – yes, really. And probably, but don’t judge just yet. Usually, when we think about thankfulness, we mean grati- tude: something nice happens, someone does something and we feel grateful for or because of it. This attitude is caused by something outside ourselves. Thankfulness is different –
an attitude we choose to maintain whatever happens; pleasing or not, helpful or hurtful -- we just choose it. So, it’s easy because thankfulness and gratitude come naturally; it’s hard because it takes real determination and humility to accept painful things and be thankful anyway; it’s free because we don’t have to pay anything to learn it but it costs us – the freedom to complain, condemn, judge and feel sorry for ourselves. Sounds like a recipe for sanity to me, or at least, for mental health. I’ve practiced thankfulness for years -- hard at first: I was so sure I knew what should be and how it should be but, whatever is, is, and it doesn’t care how I feel about it. So, better just to choose to be thankful, if only because thankfulness just feels better than outrage, resentment, jealousy and righteous (impotent) anger. With practice, thankfulness got easier; my emotions smoothed out; no more outrageous highs or crushing lows; all the negative, toxic emotions faded away. I found myself becoming more patient with others, more generous, forgiving and kinder. Though I didn’t see them actually change, my annoying relatives stopped being so annoying, because I was instead concentrating on what I loved about them. Even my general health, and my whole sense of well-being improved. I just felt (blush) happier. So here’s a New Year’s resolution: go on a great adventure -- patiently choose and choose to receive the blessings of a thankful attitude. Peter can be reached at Blochhansenpeter@gmail.com
Don't get stranded in the snow this winter. Make sure your car is winter ready! Book an appointment at Ron's today.
519-633-6130 255 Edward St., St. Thomas www.ronsautoservice.ca The home of affordable quality!
Page 12 Boomers and Beyond – Elgin • Jan-Feb 2025
To advertise here contact Geoff@villagerpublications.com
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs