Massachusetts Daily Collegian

A free and responsible press serving the UMass community since 1890

A free and responsible press serving the UMass community since 1890

Massachusetts Daily Collegian

A free and responsible press serving the UMass community since 1890

Massachusetts Daily Collegian

A memo on gratitude

 

Pricilla Gomez/Flickr)
(Pricilla Gomez/Flickr)

How do your shoes feel around your feet? You likely didn’t notice. This is due to sensory adaptation, which occurs when our brains stop noticing irrelevant stimuli. It can be helpful, as it allows our brains to only focus on so much at a time, though we often act in a similar way in our day-to-day lives. When we see a house we rarely ask who built it. We often do not ask who paved our roads. We worry about things we deem more important. The houses are there, so we forget that they haven’t always been there.

For instance, think of manhole covers. Near my home, there is a manhole cover with the date 1913, meaning that manhole cover was placed there 103 years ago. And just about everybody walks past that manhole cover every day because it is not pertinent. But a lot has happened since 1913. World War I had not yet started, and Fenway Park in Boston was only in its second season of operation. The high-five had yet to be introduced and sliced bread would not be invented for another 15 years.

Some of our infrastructure was built by people no longer here to use it. Their work outlives them and exists for our benefit.

But what’s the point? Why should we care about who built our homes or the history of manhole covers? After all, we do have other things to worry about.

There’s an answer, which is that our surroundings are constant reminders to be grateful for what we have because nobody achieves anything by themselves. We all have something to be grateful for.

Who built your house? Who paved your roads or built manhole covers? Who made the shoes that you can forget are around your feet and the jacket that keeps you warm? Thousands of people over the course of many years have contributed effort so each of us can live the lives we live. We have a society built by others and we contribute to it as well, so we did not make it here alone. There is not one person who hasn’t needed anybody for anything. We all have something for which to be grateful for. But that makes our lives even more remarkable. Humans came together to build a society, and we are lucky enough to take it for granted. For that privilege, we should be grateful.

Sometimes it feels like we are unfortunate and that everything is going the wrong way. We all have bad days. On those bad days, take a few deep breaths, take a few steps back from the problems at hand and look at the big picture. We all have so much for which to be grateful, whether it is the clothes on our backs or the opportunity for an education like the one offered at the University of Massachusetts. Take a look at the infrastructure that we share. There’s always something that we could be thankful for, whether we feel good, bad or somewhere in-between.

Joe Frank is a Collegian columnist and can be reached at [email protected].

 

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  • R

    Ruth RosenfieldOct 4, 2016 at 5:56 pm

    As always, Joe, a very thoughtful and well-written article. Gratitude can be a very important factor in fighting depression, meeting goals, and generally setting up your day to be more successful than it might be otherwise. Some people make a list each day of things for which they are grateful. They don’t have to be big things, but it’s helpful to think of different ones each day. I set myself a goal of three new reasons to be grateful each day. It can simply be the fact that it rained when we’ve so desperately needed it, or that the sun is out, or that I have an old car but it’s still in great condition. Great way to start and/or end the day on a positive not.

    Thanks for putting out positive vibes to the universe Joe. They are needed, especially now.l

    Reply
  • J

    Joyce WycoffOct 4, 2016 at 10:42 am

    Joe … great column. I would only add that gratitude is also one of the best things we can do for ourselves. Research shows us that *practicing* gratitude improves our happiness, health, relationships, success … almost everything.

    One way to practice gratitude is by keeping a gratitude journal such as Gratitude Miracles … the 5-minute journal that could change everything! (available from amazon). Not only does this journal make it easy to practice gratitude, it helps us be more aware of the miracles that happen in our lives.

    Best wishes on your journey and thanks again for speaking up for gratitude!

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