By: Gregg Krech
It is rare to meet a person whose life is full of gratitude. Even though the course of a single day may bring innumerable blessings to us, the few moments of genuine gratitude we experience are often overshadowed by our complaints, disappointments, sorrow, and frustration. We may not truly appreciate what we have until it is gone. And having lost the opportunity to be grateful, we simply find a new opportunity to be disappointed.
Gratitude requires attention and reflection. If we don’t pay attention, the countless and constant ways we are supported go unnoticed. If we don’t reflect, we fail to acquire the wisdom that comes with perspective.
From: Naikan: Gratitude, Grace, and the Japanese Art of Self-Reflection. Naikan, a structured method of self-reflection, was developed in Japan in the 1940’s by Ishin Yoshimoto, a devout Buddhist of the Pure Land Sect. Gregg Krech is an American practitioner of Naikan and the Executive Director of the TōDō Institute in Middlebury, Vermont, an education and retreat center.