Gratitude

Thank you!

Many of us use these two words very frequently for various reasons, but how many actually mean it when they say it? How many of us actually remember those persons in our lives who had done something that had/has been of immense help to us at least for that moment, or had done something to be thanked again, and again, and again throughout our, or rather their lives, and who actually either got a very formal ‘Thank you’ or ‘Thnks’ for something that they did to impact our lives in a small or a big way?

Can we remember how many times we have thanked our parents, not every time by saying it, but sometimes by expressing happiness, sometimes by letting the whole world know that we indeed have great parents who have taken care of us and have helped us live through odds, and by various other ways that will let them know that we are indeed grateful to them for all that they have done for us? Hardly ever...! It is as if it is our birth right to go on and on demanding from our parents without ever expressing our gratitude towards them. One great man in my life told me that gratitude not expressed is not gratitude at all! It is indeed so true. Have we ever seen the joy in our parents’ eyes when we do something, whatever little it may be, for them? They express their gratitude, and do not take their children for granted for whatever small they get from them. But children, more or less as a rule, as far as I have seen, are ill behaved (in many instances, I have also behaved very badly with my parents, so please do not think that I am writing this post for everyone except myself), care the least for all that their parents have done to protect them throughout their lives from all kinds of disease, bad weather in the streets when they used to return home from primary school, from all kinds of bad people out there in the streets who are always on the prowl to carry away little children and no one would ever come to know of what had become of them and other such bad things. Do we ever think of these things? Maybe not, that is why more or less every child gets a better life than the parents, but not all parents have the fortune to get back from their child(ren) something in the form of a good life, satisfaction, peace and other such beautiful things, and eventually end up in old age homes living forlorn lives in complete isolation, living in places where they are considered to be useless for the rest of the world, just because old age takes its toll on them. It is ironical how those same children, when they become parents, expect their children in turn to take care of them in their old age! Strange, isn’t it? Reminds me of a song called ‘Briddhashrom’ by Nachiketa...

Now let me touch upon something else. Let me get out of family issues and take a look at those people in the society who actually see to it that we live. One may feel that I am speaking of the ‘netas’ and the policy makers or soldiers. No friends, I am speaking of those people who are considered the least human, those people who get up in the morning before the sun gets up from its sleep and go farming with their bullocks, or take their carts to pick up the garbage from our houses to dump them, or take up the brooms in their hands and go around the city sweeping the streets so that when we, the ‘human beings’ of the society, can go around the city for walking and running in the mornings without having to tread on dirt and dust and dry leaves. How many of us have ever cared to take a look at those faces? We walk on the streets the whole day only to make them dirty again, so that they are cleaned the next morning. We are ‘human beings’. If we walk while they clean, they stop so that our walk may go on uninterrupted, but we never consider taking side. We consider ourselves to be ‘well behaved’! And regarding thanking them, forget it. They might be so lucky as not to hear abuse from us for failing to work one fine day just because they might also fall ill. Ironical, is it not, that we consider ourselves to be civilized?

Now let us have a look at what happens in offices between employers and employees. The boss always gets the ‘Thank you’ word from his subordinates, but does he ever care to express his gratitude to his team members? Be late one day for whatever genuine reason it may be, and you will inevitably have to hear something harsh. However, your boss may arrive late and (s)he has always got the right to be busy. I provide this link – please read it. I do not think I need to explain too much about this after what has been said in it. It may be my good luck that at present I am not having to deal with such a boss, but had the bitter experience of actually having to deal with one such fellow in the past.

Thank you is indeed a very valuable word. I have given just 3 examples of where we can say ‘Thank you’ to people - there are numerous more situations where gratitude can win hearts. This word, when properly used, can do wonders. It can build beautiful relationships, can strengthen existing relationships, can motivate people to work more, and can also save you a lot of trouble in times of need. It takes nothing to be grateful. One of my friends told me one day, ‘Swallow your pride. It is not poison – you won’t die!’ Getting rid of ego is one of the most difficult things to do, and again strangely, if you try, it is one of the easiest things to do, so why not get rid of it?

Let us try to make our lives beautiful, let us build beautiful relationships. I believe, out the many ways, this is one to rebuild a beautiful world.