During the COVID-19 lockdowns in Melbourne, I began a daily gratitude practice to cope with rising anxiety and uncertainty. While life’s pace caused the practice to fade, the first half of 2024 brought intense challenges that made gratitude feel distant. However, once those challenges passed, I realised that gratitude had quietly sustained me, evolving from a daily ritual into a deep, unconscious connection with life’s simple joys and Mother Earth.

Now, recognising gratitude's power within me, another question began forming in my mind.

“Could gratitude save our planet?”

Science reveals that consistent gratitude can rewire our minds, fostering a lasting, albeit subtle, increase in happiness. However, it’s crucial to acknowledge that our existence is rooted in duality—light and dark, creation and destruction. True harmony is found in embracing joy and sorrow as essential to our growth. Gratitude, when genuinely expressed, not only deepens our resilience but also strengthens our connections with others, subtly transforming our lives.

Like a wave gathering strength, gratitude can spread its warm light around the world. By fostering gratefulness for those close to us and ourselves, we brighten up our community and our inner worlds. And that’s enough.

Feel the gratefulness, breathe it in. Sip it.

How does it make you feel in your body?

How does it make your heart feel?

Deeply think about all the beautiful things your community gives you. Give thanks. Hug deeply. Look into their eyes and feel the connection. Be vulnerable; let your heart shine through. Show others how much they mean to you. Be optimistic, and see the good in others. Acknowledge the shadows, the darkness. Without darkness, we couldn’t see the light. It’s always there; it’s just a question of how hard we look.

And ask yourself, if gratitude was allowed to flow through the world like a gentle creek, why couldn’t that change the world?

References:

📄 Kurian, R.M. and Thomas, S. (2023) ‘Gratitude as a path to human prosperity during adverse circumstances: A narrative review’, British Journal of Guidance & Counselling, 51(5), pp. 739–752. doi:10.1080/03069885.2022.2154314.

📄 Kates, S. and DeSteno, D. (2020) Gratitude reduces consumption of depleting resources [Preprint]. doi:10.31234/osf.io/k95rj.

🌐 https://www.wri.org/insights/interactive-chart-shows-changes-worlds-top-10-emitters

🌐 https://www.ecowatch.com/wind-solar-energy-production-coal-us-2024.html

🌐 https://www.euronews.com/green/2024/07/09/deforestation-in-colombia-fell-to-historic-lows-in-2023-how-did-they-achieve-the-drop

🌐 https://www.euronews.com/green/2024/06/20/greatest-recovery-of-a-cat-species-ever-achieved-iberian-lynx-is-no-longer-on-brink-of-ext

📺 Andrew Huberman: The Science of Gratitude & How to Build a Gratitude Practice https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KVjfFN89qvQ