An Attitude of Gratitude

Most times we take things for granted. That is not how it should be, says Monica Fernandes.

- Monica Fernandes

A story is told about a hunter who lost his way in the forest. After a few days without any food, the famished man spied a solitary apple tree. He was elated as he plucked the fruits and thanked god profusely. He gobbled the first juicy apple and went on eating apple after apple. But after eating the first few apples, his joy began diminishing and when he came to the tenth apple, he felt frustrated at having only apples to eat. The tenth apple was as tasty as the first one. But the hunter was fed up of too much of a good thing. He failed to appreciate that the apples were keeping him alive and giving him the strength to find a way out of the forest.

Now here is a real-life tale. lata D, a divorcee with three kids, was very happy to get free rations from a charitable organisation to feed her family during the ongoing virus-driven pandemic, but after a few days she didn’t appreciate the generous gift anymore. Her case resembles the fable narrated earlier. This has been called the law of diminishing marginal utility but in fact denotes diminishing gratitude when we take things for granted. Roman statesman Marcus Cicero called gratitude “the mother of all human feelings.” Gratitude is a stress-buster. It regulates emotions, fosters happiness and hope, and reduces anxiety.