Gratitude and Patience. When someone asks, “What must I do in order to live a happy and fulfilling life?” The answer is to have Gratitude and Patience.

When we go out and celebrate special occasions with our loved ones, or have a laugh with friends, we feel joyous and become very happy. A few days later, however, that feeling starts to disappear from our lives because we simply forget about them. We move on as if the moments are gone; we don’t fully appreciate them. When good things occur we must show gratitude that they happened and brought joy to our lives. As gratitude remains the happiness remains. With gratitude your small joys will become a bigger part of your life, constantly reminding you that your life is not just the small tasks we accomplish, but the small joys we have with ourselves and others.

The second is patience. Today’s world is very fast-paced. Anything we want we can have almost instantly. However, when there is something that we can’t attain quickly we begin to feel upset and depressed. We start to develop anxiety. It is during these times that we must have patience. If we truly want something, then we must work hard towards it, and in time we will attain it. Having the patience to wait for what we want will remove the depression and anxiety that would have developed while waiting.

For example, when a farmer plants a seed, he or she knows that the fruits from the plant will not arrive within the next few minutes. There is a whole cycle the seed must go through, there is a certain amount of time that the farmer must wait. The farmer must water the plant, allow the seed to sprout, and wait till the tree grows. Only then will it bear fruit. When we sow the seed of desire we must put the effort towards it, but also have the patience to wait for the right time for our desire to be fulfilled.

Both gratitude and patience contribute toward living a happy and fulfilling life. We can develop our gratitude and patience through meditation and contemplation. Through meditation we can begin to realize that whatever happens in our lives is for our own good and through contemplation, we can develop an attitude of gratitude, and the patience to achieve anything we want.