Don't Wait to Tell People You Appreciate Them

Something that my mother always taught me, was to tell people thank you and really make an effort to show gratitude.  Even in negative situations, I have taken the time to tell people thank you for what they have done for me.  I guess it might even sound weird but I have even thanked my ex husband for divorcing me and exes for breaking up with me.  The reason?  Because even though things ended up on a bad note, there were good things about the relationships. I guess I have tried to be a "glass half full", kind of girl because I see no sense in wallowing in misery.  I would rather move on and be happy and be thankful the time or the experiences I was able to enjoy with people, even if they are no longer in my life.

I guess having an attitude of gratitude, might seem kind of Polly Anna-ish in a way, but I think that people can never hear enough, how much we appreciate them and how much they mean to us.  Once you start doing that and validating the good in others, it becomes second nature and something that you genuinely mean.  I think that when we thank others, we often take them off guard in that they are not used to be appreciated.  To me that is kind of pathetic that we forget to tell people what they mean to us. I know it is easy to get wrapped up in the hustle and bustle of life, but all too often we forget to thank others when it matters most- and more often, right away when a situation occurs where we are grateful. However, a delayed thank you is better than nothing at all.

Regardless of whether someone has been rude or considerate to me, I still thank you.  I feel that even though a situation may not be positive after the fact, acting like the whole friendship, relationship, or situation was bad, when there were some good times, isn't allowing one to be honest with themselves and others.  Everyone deserves to hear that they are appreciated.  I think that we often take for granted that people "know" we are grateful.  But how do we know unless we offer a thank you or ask? We don't... In fact, what we do is expect people to do things for us, without regard for their feelings or what their hopes and dreams are.  If someone did that to us, we would be angry or a variety of other negative emotions.

I actually do something that sounds weird, but I try to say thank you to at least ten people during the day.  If I don't get out that day, I try to say ten thank you to the people that I am around when I genuinely mean it.  You don't want it to become unemotional or expected... Because then the gratitude doesn't carry the full meaning.  I promise that if you try doing this, you will find that others will soon follow suite.  It all boils down to the Golden Rule: Treat others the way that you want to be treated...