‘If you take it for granted, you don’t deserve it’
“I’m always taken for granted” is a very common line. So many people I meet feel that their entire life is spent taking care of others, catering to their needs, their demands and their wishes and that very rarely do they get even a degree of that in reciprocity. “Live every day as if is your last, because one of these days, it will be.” –
Based in Seattle , Sameer Mahan says everyday, we wake up, go to school, chill with friends, eat, sleep, and all the other activities our day may consist of. But most of us never take the time to think about our life and what we have. For example, most of you may dread coming to school to learn, but there are many people out there in the world that would give anything to have an education. You should be grateful for the privilege of coming to school for an education. “The more often we see the things around us – even the beautiful and wonderful things – the more they become invisible to us.
That is why we often take for granted the beauty of this world: the flowers, the trees, the birds, the clouds – even those we love. Because we see things so often, we see them less and less.” If you have a roof on top of your head, food to eat, and clothes to wear, you should consider yourself lucky. There are so many people in the world without food and without shelter. Instead of selfishly wanting more for your benefit, for once we should think about other people in the world who don’t have what we have, and start appreciating what we actually do have, even if it may not be much to us.
We are all so much more fortunate than we give ourselves credit for. We constantly preoccupy ourselves with thoughts of things we don’t have and experiences we are missing out on. Why do we often take for granted the very things that deserve our gratitude the most? We do this with both people and possessions. The problem is many people do not realize this until the situation has come and passed. We take things for granted on a daily basis, always with the assumption that whenever we need something, it will be there.
“People say you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone. Truth is, you knew what you had, you just never thought you’d lose it.” The thing is, very few people can see the impact of what they do now and how it relates to their futures. Which would you rather regret: the present, where you have no idea what is happening as it’s in real time and you haven’t the slightest conception of long-term consequences; or the past where you can take your time to see things as they were? People make mistakes and leave the things they love most. They fail to appreciate the good thing they once had and as a result will continuously regret their decision.
We need to learn to be appreciative and grateful for everything we have and everything we are going to receive. If we all stopped for a moment and looked around us, we would find endless things we have that others are not as fortunate to have. People complain constantly about having an outdated model of a car or phone when we should just be grateful we have these things in the first place.
In order to achieve wanting only the things and people that you have you need to look into the positive things you gain from having these people or things around you. The things you take for granted are the things others are praying for.
What Do You Take for Granted?
Nature – After days of bad weather, we appreciate the sunshine. Maybe we shouldn’t take clean air or water for granted.
Choices -We marry the love of our life, pursue the career of our dreams, and vote for the candidate of our choice. Free choice, however, is not a given everywhere.
Parents – You have parents who offer their unconditional love. They’ve given a lot of themselves to ensure that you have a better life. Show some gratitude. If you’re not one already, you’ll probably be a parent one day.
Loyalty – People remain faithful to us through good times and bad. When was the last time you showed your appreciation?
Conclusion
There are many things we fail to realize the true value of until they are missing from our lives. Think of technology, the Internet and your cell phone. You do not realize how vital your cell phone is to your life until you have to go days without it. Enjoy the little things in life because someday you will realize they were the big things.
Appreciate What You Have Before It Becomes What You Had