Being Thankful vs. Being Satisfied
There's a quote that comes to mind from the inventor and entrepreneur Thomas Edison. "Restlessness is discontent and discontent is the first necessity of progress. Show me a thoroughly satisfied man and I will show you a failure."
Now don't get me wrong, it can be really good to be thankful for what you have in life, whether it's your job, your home, or simply for the basics like food and oxygen. However, there is a huge difference between being thankful and being satisfied.
I vividly remember reading the school newspaper once, either in middle or high school. One of the student reporters had written an article about the horrors of human trafficking and modern day slavery. Understandably I was saddened and horrified while reading this article, and hoped that at the end of said article there would be information about what to do to hopefully combat human trafficking. I was thinking that there would be information about signing petitions, writing to politicians, or even a list of websites or books to find out more about the situation. But instead of that, the article ended with (I'm paraphrasing here), "And what we should take away from human trafficking and modern day slavery is that we should be grateful for what we have in this beautiful, first-world country of ours."
Not to sound too critical of a student reporter still years away from even applying to college, but I was livid at that answer. And yes, while it's good to be grateful for what one has, thankfulness is not going to eliminate human trafficking or modern day slavery. It's not going to bring about world peace, fix climate change, end child abuse, annihilate poverty, or anything of the kind.
Being thankful vs. being satisfied also applies on a less macroscopic level, to the day to day life of an individual. You can be thankful for the fact that you have a job that pays the bills, but if it's not your dream job, you are allowed to not be satisfied and can strive to eventually get a new career. Granted, if you are unsatisfied in an area of your life, you shouldn't act all whiny and go, "Oh, woe is me!" in public, but actively try to change your situation. If you're in a bad relationship, or even simply a stale or unsatisfying one, you are allowed to leave and move forward; you do not have to be grateful to a person who treats you like garbage. Quite frankly, if you're in a bad relationship not just with a lover but with a so-called friend or even a relative by blood, you do not have to be thankful for that (honestly, I have never been a believer in the phrase, "Blood is thicker than water." Unfortunately there are a lot of relationships by blood out in the world that are, for one reason or another, toxic and have not reason for being). And so on...
Being thankful can be a wonderful thing. It can help us get through the day, appreciate what we have, and enjoy life in general. There have actually been studies showing that being thankful can lead to better health (both physical and psychological), better sleep, and better self-esteem. But being thankful doesn't have to prevent someone from seeking satisfaction, and ultimately happiness. I have encountered many people in my life that have been afraid of seeking happiness and satisfaction because of guilt about not appreciating what one has. They may say something along the lines of, "Well, there are people who have it so much worse so I should just..." or, "But there are starving children in Africa so I should just pretend to be okay." You being unsatisfied isn't going to help anyone. So whether you're simply unsatisfied with the way your own life is going, or even with how the world is at the moment, you can be thankful, but still seek out satisfaction by any means necessary.
Now don't get me wrong, it can be really good to be thankful for what you have in life, whether it's your job, your home, or simply for the basics like food and oxygen. However, there is a huge difference between being thankful and being satisfied.
I vividly remember reading the school newspaper once, either in middle or high school. One of the student reporters had written an article about the horrors of human trafficking and modern day slavery. Understandably I was saddened and horrified while reading this article, and hoped that at the end of said article there would be information about what to do to hopefully combat human trafficking. I was thinking that there would be information about signing petitions, writing to politicians, or even a list of websites or books to find out more about the situation. But instead of that, the article ended with (I'm paraphrasing here), "And what we should take away from human trafficking and modern day slavery is that we should be grateful for what we have in this beautiful, first-world country of ours."
Not to sound too critical of a student reporter still years away from even applying to college, but I was livid at that answer. And yes, while it's good to be grateful for what one has, thankfulness is not going to eliminate human trafficking or modern day slavery. It's not going to bring about world peace, fix climate change, end child abuse, annihilate poverty, or anything of the kind.
Being thankful vs. being satisfied also applies on a less macroscopic level, to the day to day life of an individual. You can be thankful for the fact that you have a job that pays the bills, but if it's not your dream job, you are allowed to not be satisfied and can strive to eventually get a new career. Granted, if you are unsatisfied in an area of your life, you shouldn't act all whiny and go, "Oh, woe is me!" in public, but actively try to change your situation. If you're in a bad relationship, or even simply a stale or unsatisfying one, you are allowed to leave and move forward; you do not have to be grateful to a person who treats you like garbage. Quite frankly, if you're in a bad relationship not just with a lover but with a so-called friend or even a relative by blood, you do not have to be thankful for that (honestly, I have never been a believer in the phrase, "Blood is thicker than water." Unfortunately there are a lot of relationships by blood out in the world that are, for one reason or another, toxic and have not reason for being). And so on...
Being thankful can be a wonderful thing. It can help us get through the day, appreciate what we have, and enjoy life in general. There have actually been studies showing that being thankful can lead to better health (both physical and psychological), better sleep, and better self-esteem. But being thankful doesn't have to prevent someone from seeking satisfaction, and ultimately happiness. I have encountered many people in my life that have been afraid of seeking happiness and satisfaction because of guilt about not appreciating what one has. They may say something along the lines of, "Well, there are people who have it so much worse so I should just..." or, "But there are starving children in Africa so I should just pretend to be okay." You being unsatisfied isn't going to help anyone. So whether you're simply unsatisfied with the way your own life is going, or even with how the world is at the moment, you can be thankful, but still seek out satisfaction by any means necessary.
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