How to Make Misfortune a Sweeter Experience

All of us have had the experience of traveling down the highway of life only to have an orange detour sign send us down a completely unwelcome and unanticipated road. The loss of a job. Sudden health challenges. Financial reverses. Accident. Family upheaval. These experiences can leave us wondering what we did wrong.

We have experienced almost every one of the above misfortunes and we have found that one simple thing makes all of these lemony experiences a little sweeter. Gratitude.

This is not just passively sitting and counting your blessings - although this never hurts. It’s not even thanking others for all they have done for you (also a good idea). I am talking about active gratitude whereby you take stock of your circumstances and see a world full of possibilities instead of darkness. You see a new world of things to do, people to help, and burdens to lift. Where one door closes. Another opens. This type of gratitude propels you actively forward in new directions, finding and mining the possibilities in a new situation.

The opposite of this is inactive murmuring. I once heard someone say “No misfortune is so bad that whining about it won’t make it worse.” When adversity hits it's okay to offload some heavy feelings, but then get up and get to work.

It is a way of life. It is an attitude that is cultivated over a lifetime. When we live in gratitude the glass is always half full. Challenges are opportunities. New horizons are always brighter than the last. Your life is what you make it.

I know two sisters. Both have had similar life experiences. A tough childhood. Less than perfect marriages and children. Yet one has become embittered by life’s experiences. She has become depressed and unhappy. This has led to a broken family and shattered dreams. The other sister has a remarkably positive outlook. She has maintained her faith and attained a life of abundance despite setbacks. Her secret seems to be gratitude. She is grateful for the smallest favor and the most random gestures. She lives a happy and plentiful life because she lives in gratitude.

We can sweeten most of life’s experiences with the sweet honey of gratitude.

Count your blessings and they will multiply.

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