As a little girl, I learned that the opposite of love is hate. While there is some truth in that, I have since come to understand that the true opposite of love is selfishness. When we are caught up in our own lives, trying to satisfy our own needs, and follow our own agendas, it is very difficult to really love one another.
I think that the most effective way to overcome selfishness is through gratitude. Gratitude awakens our hearts to beauty and abundance. It reminds us that we are a part of something bigger than us. When we stop taking our own lives for granted, we are motivated to help others.
Being thankful is a conscious decision. It requires mindful living, an ongoing awareness of the world around us. We can cultivate this by choosing to count our blessings every day. Keeping a gratitude journal has been very helpful for me. Writing it down helps me stay focused. Sharing gratitude around the family dinner table is also great. Ask each family member to name something they are thankful for from that particular day. We can learn a lot about each other by counting our blessings together.
Start letting go of selfishness and start developing an attitude of gratitude today!
“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.” ~Melody Beattie