How Other Creatures Can Teach Us Gratitude
The animal kingdom also has ways to show thankfulness, it’s not just an emotion reserved for humans.
It’s proven that primates and cetaceans (whales, dolphins, porpoises) have emotional awareness. Some researchers have found evidence of social bonding behaviours, showing complex social structures.
Examples of animal gratitude witnessed include:
- A lioness (freed from a trap) later brought her cubs, to visit the person who rescued her.
- A dolphin trapped in fishing net, approached a diver who quickly freed the gentle creature. Instead of swimming away immediately, the dolphin lingered, circling the diver as a kind of ‘thank you dance’ beneath the waves.
- A herd of elephants knew how to thank the humans, who saved one of their calves. They erupted into a ‘chorus of woos’ with raised trunks.
- An octopus in Egypt was rescued from sand, by some holidaymakers. The next day they returned, and the same octopus followed them for hours along the beach waves!
- This baby seal was rescued by South Africans, who caught it to release it from fishing net. Usually they would run away, but the seal stopped for a few seconds to look back, as if to say thank you.
Simple Ways to Be Thankful Every Day
Let’s face it. England is renowned as a country of miserable moaners! If we’re not complaining about the weather, it’s usually something else!
However, presuming you don’t want to be like some ‘giant-white-teethed American’ who beams and pretends everything is okay when it’s not, there are still more subtle ways to be thankful for everyday blessings. It’s a good habit to get into!
There is strong evidence that feeling thankful can lift your mood, bring stronger relationships and help you notice what matters. Just having friends to trust, a loved one to be there for you, or having good physical health and roof over your head, all are good things to thankful for.
Here are practical ways to make gratitude an easy part of your everyday life.
Start a Thankfulness Journal
Some people are not keen on this idea, thinking it’s a bit too ‘out there’. If you’re not in to writing a journal, you could just write down three things each morning or night you’re thankful for.
Or simply just say a little prayer, about how thankful you were for a kind word, a tasty meal or a quiet walk. This can help you remember simple, good moments. It’s a steady way to shift your focus to the positive.
Say Thank You Out Loud
Don’t hold back when you appreciate someone’s help or kindness. A simple “thank you” brightens both your day and theirs.
It doesn’t have to be all fake-sounding. But England is the country of good manners. And it helps to keep up appearances, and remember to say thank you, even if someone just opens a door for you.
Pay Attention to the Present
Pause and notice what’s happening around you now. Feel the warmth of sunlight, listen to laughter, or taste your favourite food. Do you ever think ‘thank you?’ for the sun rise?
Often when life gets too busy, we forget to be thankful for things that go unnoticed. Even dull days hold small gifts if you look for them.
Give Back When You Can
Doing something for others, even if it’s small, can boost your own sense of gratitude. Offer to help a friend, volunteer in your town, or simply listen well when someone needs to talk.
Helping someone else often reminds you of what you have to give.
Remember the Tough Times
Think back to periods when life was hard, and notice how far you’ve come. This isn’t about dwelling on the past, but about realising your own strength and what’s changed.
It puts today’s worries into perspective and can help you appreciate what’s better now.
Create Thankful Routines
Add gratitude into your routine so it fits easily into daily life. Try saying something you’re grateful for at family meals or before bed. Share one good thing with a friend or partner every day. These routines make gratitude feel natural and expected.
Focus on What You Have
It’s easy to look at what’s missing, but turn your attention towards what’s in your life now. Notice your home, your loved ones, or even the things you own that make life easier.
Get off social media comparison sites, and remind yourself of what you have. It may not be on a par with a celebrity home, you may not have a model figure, but if you have your health and kind people around you, you’re a lot better than many.
Share Praise and Encouragement
Go beyond thanking people—show you notice their effort. Give a genuine compliment, share good news about someone, or encourage their strengths.
Being open with praise lifts others up and builds a grateful mood all round.
Take Care of Yourself
Being thankful for your own body and mind means treating yourself well. Rest when you need it and do what makes you feel healthy. When you care for yourself, you’re more likely to notice your strengths and what your body does for you every day.
Fitness trainer Lucy Wyndham-Read offers wonderful 10-minute free fitness videos on YouTube. And in each one, she reminds us to be thankful that we have bodies to exercise.
One Man’s Simple Act of Gratitude
A Simple Act of Gratitude is a really nice book, by an everyday man, who is not a professional writer, but just decided to share his story, thinking he may have hit upon one of the big secrets of life:
Age 53, John was very depressed. He was twice-divorced (and had grown distant from his two daughters). He lived in an apartment that froze in winter and was hot in summer. His small law firm was failing, he was 40 pounds overweight. And to top it off, his girlfriend had just left him.
He had very little to feel thankful for.
But inspired by a heartfelt note that his ex-girlfriend had sent, thanking him for a gift, he decided he would spent the next year writing thank-you notes to people who had been kind to him, throughout life.
This sounds easy? It was, at first. For the first couple of months, John managed to look up and remember people from his past (from teachers to shop assistants), who had shown a kindness, and wrote notes to thank them.
But as the weeks turned to months, he had to really stretch back to childhood and his deep memories, to find more people to thank.
And this is the miracle: within weeks, John’s life began to turn around! People were simply nicer to him, his children got back in touch, his health improved, and his law firm picked up during a recession, while the bank across the road folded.
Had John just discovered one of the secrets of life? He thinks so, and is why he wrote this book!
