gratitude towards nature essay

Essay on Gratitude Towards Nature

Students are often asked to write an essay on Gratitude Towards Nature in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

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100 Words Essay on Gratitude Towards Nature

Understanding gratitude.

Gratitude means being thankful. It’s about appreciating what we have. Often, we forget to be thankful for nature. Nature gives us so much. It gives us food, water, and clean air. We should show gratitude towards nature.

The Gifts of Nature

Nature gives us many gifts. Trees give us oxygen to breathe. Rivers give us water to drink. Plants give us food to eat. These are all gifts from nature. We should be thankful for these gifts. We should show our gratitude by taking care of nature.

Showing Gratitude

How can we show gratitude to nature? We can take care of it. We can stop littering. We can plant more trees. We can save water. We can stop cutting down trees. By doing these things, we show our gratitude to nature.

In conclusion, nature is very important. It gives us so much. We should be thankful for it. We should show our gratitude by taking care of it. This is how we can show our gratitude towards nature.

250 Words Essay on Gratitude Towards Nature

Introduction.

Nature is a gift that surrounds us with beauty, inspiration, and life. We must show our gratitude towards nature, the same way we do to our parents, friends, and teachers.

Why Be Grateful to Nature?

Nature provides us with everything we need to live. The air we breathe, the food we eat, the water we drink, all come from nature. Trees give us oxygen, rivers provide water, and the earth grows our food. Without nature, we wouldn’t be able to survive. So, it’s important to be thankful for what nature gives us.

Showing Gratitude to Nature

We can show our gratitude towards nature in many ways. We can take care of the environment by not littering, recycling, and conserving water. Planting trees and flowers is another way to say thank you to nature. We can also enjoy nature’s beauty by going for walks, watching sunsets, or just sitting quietly in a park.

Benefits of Gratitude

Being grateful to nature not only helps the environment but also makes us feel good. It reminds us of the simple joys of life and helps us stay positive. When we appreciate nature, we learn to value what we have and not take it for granted.

In conclusion, nature is a precious gift that deserves our gratitude. Let’s promise to take care of it and appreciate its beauty every day. Remember, a grateful heart is a happy heart!

500 Words Essay on Gratitude Towards Nature

Nature is a beautiful gift given to us by the universe. It is filled with stunning views, fresh air, green plants, and many animals. We should always be thankful for what nature provides us and show our gratitude towards it.

Why Should We Be Grateful to Nature?

Nature gives us everything we need to live. The food we eat, the water we drink, the air we breathe, all come from nature. The sun gives us light and warmth. Plants give us fruits, vegetables, and medicines. Animals give us companionship and help keep the balance in nature. The trees clean our air by taking in harmful gases and giving out oxygen. Nature is like a kind friend who is always there for us, providing us with everything we need to live and grow.

Ways to Show Gratitude Towards Nature

Showing gratitude to nature can be done in many ways. One way is to take care of our environment. We can do this by not littering, recycling our waste, and planting more trees. We can also save water and electricity, which are resources provided by nature.

Another way to show gratitude is by appreciating the beauty of nature. We can do this by spending time outdoors, going for walks, or simply sitting in a park and enjoying the view. When we appreciate the beauty of nature, we are saying thank you for the peace and happiness it brings to our lives.

The Benefits of Gratitude Towards Nature

When we are grateful to nature, we feel happier and more peaceful. This is because nature has a calming effect on our minds. It helps us to relax and forget about our worries. Being grateful to nature also makes us more aware of the importance of taking care of our environment. This can lead to us making better choices that help to protect and preserve nature for future generations.

Nature is a precious gift that we should always be grateful for. It provides us with everything we need to live, and it brings beauty and peace into our lives. Showing gratitude towards nature is not only good for our own health and happiness, but it also helps to protect and preserve nature for future generations. So let’s always remember to say thank you to nature, and let’s show our gratitude by taking good care of our beautiful planet.

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Gratitude to Nature

If the earth is to come alive in the 21st century, humanity must undergo a great shift in consciousness. Each of us needs to become aware of the profound relationship that exists between our thoughts and the health and stability of the earth. To revive our ailing planet, each of us needs to infuse the earth with the healing energy of our deep gratitude for all the earth’s blessings. Words of gratitude, thoughts of gratitude, actions of gratitude toward our beloved earth-as we rekindle this spirit of gratitude our way of life will naturally change and the earth will find the power to heal itself… As we deepen our sense of oneness with all life on earth, may we each come to know what it truly means to love, cherish, and make the most of our own lives as well.

Like a garden, gratitude requires nurturing and cultivation. Masami Saionji tells us: We need to create new habits and new ways of thinking, until the resonance of love and gratitude comes streaming out from our whole being .

All of us have many, many things to be thankful for, beginning with the infinite gifts from nature — the sun that warms us, the food that the earth provides, the water we drink, and our own physical body. We can be grateful for the friends and family who share our joys and challenges, the myriad people who make up our society, and indeed, all living things and existences in the universe.

A simple way that all of us can help to heal and enliven the world of nature — and brighten our own lives — with love and gratitude is through words and expressions. For example, when walking on the earth, we can think or say things like, Thank you, dear earth! I am so grateful to you for supporting my footsteps! While drinking a glass of water, we can think or say, Dear water, how wonderful you are! How refreshed and radiant you make me feel! ”

As we keep thinking and speaking in this way, harmonious energy will come to permeate our existence and spread to everything in our environment, reawakening nature’s power to heal itself. In living this way, step by step, we can change our behavior and return to oneness with everything in nature. Then, and only then, will the earth naturally revive.

Continue to: Prayers and IN s of gratitude

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• Practicing the Divinity IN for the Self
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• Gratitude to Nature & Bright Words Mandalas
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• Peaceful Breathing

Nature & Well-Being: Gratitude

Part 4 in a weeklong series of blog posts written by undergraduate students from the 2017 spring-semester class, “Mindfulness & Compassion: Living Fully Personally and Professionally” at the University of Virginia.

Introduction

Sitting on the beach, hearing the waves lap gently against the sand as the stars make their appearance into the sky, it is so easy to wonder how small I must be in the vast expanse of the galaxy. The trying times I have faced, inevitable stresses of day-to-day life and my own shortcomings dissolve into the waves as they recede back into the expanse of the ocean. I find that I have time to simply marvel at the world and be grateful for this moment. Yet, I find myself thinking that such an experience with nature will not be a frequent occurrence. The pace of every-day life has been accelerated with the technology that we rely on and it almost seems impossible to disconnect myself from the “world”. With technology at my disposal, it often seems as though the world is at my fingertips, yet when I am in nature, I realize that I do not truly know what the world is.

Walking through the campus of the University of Virginia to get to class I have noticed a vast majority of students clutching their phones as they check their notifications, idly browsing social media, or simply drowning out their surroundings as they listen to music. When we college students aren’t on our phones, we are on our laptops finishing papers, meeting deadlines or watching Netflix in an attempt to relax. The longer I kept to this vicious cycle of alienating myself from nature, the more helpless I began to feel against my negative thoughts and stresses that came my way. Trying situations abound in this world and it is easy to feel as though we are going through them alone, but being out in nature, it doesn’t seem that way.

As a member of a society in which portable information processing systems have hastened the pace of life,  it seems that the value placed on nature has diminished. Given the psychologically freeing experiences I have witnessed, it does not come as a surprise that there is mounting scientific evidence confirming that those who spend their time in nature experience a plethora of health benefits, namely, productivity.

Productivity, which is now linked to technology, is valued so highly in our society, to the point where it seems nearly impossible to disconnect ourselves from the constant stream of information, deadlines and entertainment at our disposal. It seems that there is barely any time to pause amidst our hectic lives to, as they say, smell the roses. But doing just that may be more productive than commonly believed.

Decreasing Negative Emotions

Currently, 50% of the population is living in urban areas and by 2050 this number may rise to 70% (2). This may seem fascinating; however, paired with the fact that urbanization is linked with, “ increased levels of mental illness, including anxiety disorders and depression” the rising number of individuals arriving in cities will pose a serious threat to mental well-being (2).

A study by Bratman et. al. in 2015 tracked two groups of participants who walked for 90 minutes: one in an area abounding in shrubbery and the other along an urbanized area(2). Upon comparing the respiration and heart rates, self-completed questionnaires as well as the brain scans performed before and after conducting the experiment, the researchers noted significant alterations in a number of the participants’ brains. Those who walked in nature displayed decreased neural activity in the subgenual prefrontal cortex, a brain region functioning during ruminative thoughts which are associated with depression (2). Such findings indicate that increased exposure to nature may decrease the mental mechanism associated with depression.

These results may provide grounds for a more critical analysis of the urban layout of our cities, which are in essence a concrete jungle. Access to nature is a critical component to mental well-being and by creating urban areas that are integrated within nature, rather than supplanting nature, a more environmentally friendly and sustainable form of urbanization is possible.

Increasing Functioning and Productivity

In today’s fast paced world, individuals seem to be preoccupied with productivity and efficiency. To increase performance, people turn to stimulants such as caffeine and misuse drugs such as Adderall. Though usually not considered as such, caffeine is a drug, and in fact it is, “the most commonly used drug in the world” (5). Selling caffeine through the coffee shop industry has become a highly lucrative business stemming from a work culture preoccupied with output.

While drugs are successful in producing short term results, they come with side-effects. Research is surfacing that shows spending time in nature can greatly improve work output without, of course, negative effects. Research conducted by Taylor et. al. measured the effect of greenery near housing on concentration, inhibition of initial impulses, and delay of gratification. It was ascertained that girls display a linear correlation between greenery near their homes and “attentional functioning” (7). Greenery within the immediate area of their home did not show significant increase in concentration, self-discipline and delay of gratification in boys; however, this may be due to the fact that, on average, boys spend more time playing farther from home than girls; hence, their, “attentional functioning” may be impacted only if the area in which they play is surrounded by greenery (7).

There seem to be two types of attention, directed attention and fascination, according to William James. Utilizing directed attention for long periods of time, such as in conducting crucial work, has been shown to lead to, “directed attention fatigue”, distractibility, irritability, and impulsivity; however, the, “inherent fascination” people find in nature, such as simply looking out a window, can aid people in recovering from this fatigue, for directed attention is allowed to “rest” (3). The ability of nature to restore concentration, which is a key predictor for future success, may be seen as critical for human learning.

An added benefit of being exposed to nature is an increase in creativity. In 2012, David L. Strayers and his colleagues directed a four day study involving hikers during a backpacking trip.  The results of this study found that those who took the backpacking trip were able to solve 47% more puzzles necessitating creativity in comparison to the control group, which was composed of people waiting to take the hike (6). It may thus be understood that nature is able to not only increase concentration by providing a means to recover from fatigue but also an outlet which allows for an increase in imagination.

Helping to Builds Relationships

Feeling mentally fatigued after a long day sitting in a room, staring at a computer or completing book work, is a common occurrence in this day and age; however, time spent away from nature may have more sinister consequences than merely being mentally draining. In a study conducted by Weinstein et. al. in 2008, it has been suggested that being exposed to, “non-nature contexts” has the ability to change mental activity (8). In her study, Weinstein measured the effect of nature on intrinsic and extrinsic aspirations. Intrinsic aspirations, “concern the pursuit of goals that in themselves satisfy basic psychological needs” whereas extrinsic aspirations, “focus on externally valued goods that are not inherently rewarding but are sought to derive positive regard or rewards from others” (8). The participants who were immersed more heavily in nature reported higher valuing of intrinsic and lower valuing of extrinsic aspirations whereas those immersed in, “non-nature contexts” valued extrinsic aspirations but had no change in their intrinsic aspirations (8). It is fascinating to note that exposure or lack of exposure to nature has the ability to cause a significant change in mental activity.

In fact, those who were shown nature slides were more prone to making “generous decisions” whereas those shown non-nature slides were less prone to generosity and more prone to greed-based decisions (8). The pro-social behaviors linked with exposure to nature suggest that nature is able to increase the likelihood of individuals’ ability to build relationships with those around us. Hence, nature may be seen as a unifying factor that not only benefits personal well-being, but also increases connectedness between people. In turn, this connectedness has the potential to improve society as a whole.

What is Gratitude?

While there is a plethora of information regarding the benefits of nature, it may be rendered pointless if we do not act upon the knowledge we have. That being said, a crucial aspect of maintaining well-being is gratitude. This is the state of being thankful and appreciating, “ what is valuable and meaningful to oneself” (5).

Research indicates that gratitude and feelings of happiness are positively correlated . In a study conducted by Dickerhoof, college students choose either an exercise that would increase happiness or one that consisted of “cognitive exercises” under the impression that either exercise would increase their “sense of well-being” ( 5 ). The “happiness paradigm” employed necessitated that the participants either “write about their best possible future selves (optimism exercise) or write letters of gratitude (gratitude exercise)” while the control group wrote about their past week ( 5 ). It was found that the happiness paradigm group displayed increased signs of well-being ( 5 ).

In another study conducted by  Krejtz et. al. in 2014, participants were separated into a gratitude group and a control group. Participants in the gratitude group recorded daily worry, esteem and gratitude for two weeks (1). It was ascertained that participants who listed that for which they felt grateful each day reacted less strongly to the stressful occurrences they experienced each day than the control group (1). It may thus be concluded that by recalling moments for which we are grateful, we may be able to put stress into perspective. After practicing gratitude by journaling, I myself have experienced a marked difference in my thought-process and ability to handle stressful situations. I no longer fixate upon the negative aspects of my life, but rather turn to that for which I am grateful in order to gain perspective of a certain situation.

Connecting Gratitude and Nature

While gratitude and time in nature are each linked individually to increased personal well-being, bringing these together in a practice of extending gratitude towards nature and being grateful while in nature may further deepen the benefits of well-being. As humans, we have been given the gift of nature and the plethora of positive benefits it has to offer. It is capable of improving our personal well-being, by creating balanced individuals with a tranquil and prosocial demeanor. Additionally, pondering the benefits that nature has to offer creates a sense of gratitude. Gratitude compliments nature and nature compliments gratitude. Simply by experiencing nature and practicing gratitude, personal well-being and quality of life can be vastly improved. Experiencing the beauty of nature and giving gratitude towards its beauty is quite an experience.

[1]Bratman, G. N., Daily, G. C., Levy, B. J., & Gross, J. J. (2015). The benefits of nature experience: Improved affect and cognition. Landscape and Urban Planning , 138 , 41-50.

[2]Bratman, G. N., Hamilton, J. P., Hahn, K. S., Daily, G. C., & Gross, J. J. (2015). Nature experience reduces rumination and subgenual prefrontal cortex activation. Proceedings of the National Academy of the Sciences of the United States of America , 112 (28), 8567-8572.

[3]Clay, R. A. (2001). Green is good for you. American Psychology Association , 32 (4), 40.

[4]Nichols, H. (2016, November 10). Caffeine: All you need to know. Retrieved April 24, 2017, from Medical News Today

[5]Sansone, R. A., & Sansone, L. A. (2010). Gratitude and well being. Psychiatry(Edgmont) , 7 (11), 18-22.

[6]Suttie, J. (2016, March 2). How nature can make you kinder, happier, and more creative. Retrieved April 23, 2017, from Greater Good the Science of a Meaningful Life website:

[7]Taylor, A. F., Kuo, F. E., & Sullivan, W. C. (2002). Views of nature and self-discipline: Evidence from inner city children. Journal of Environmental Psychology , 22 (1-2), 49-63.

[8]Weinstein, N., Przybylski, A. K., & Ryan, R. M. (2009). Can nature make us more caring? Effects of immersion in nature on intrinsic aspirations and generosity. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin , 35 (10).

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Gratitude to Nature (in Environmental Values)

In this article, I consider the claim that we ought to be grateful to nature and argue that this claim is unjustified. I proceed by arguing against the two most plausible lines of reasoning for the claim that we ought to be grateful to nature: 1) that nature is a fitting or appropriate object of our gratitude, and 2) that we ought to be grateful to nature insofar as gratitude to nature enhances, preserves or indicates in us the virtue of gratitude, a character trait we morally ought to have. My arguments against the first line of reasoning show it to be unsound, and my arguments against the second reveal that we actually have reasons to avoid being grateful to nature. If we have reasons to treat nature well, I show, those may be rooted in the appropriateness of attitudes like praise, appreciation or compassion, but not gratitude. I conclude by highlighting several implications my arguments entail about gratitude to entities other than nature and about environmental virtues other than gratitude.

Related Papers

Philosophical Studies

Tony Manela

Many find it plausible that for a given beneficiary, Y, benefactor, R, and action, ϕ, Y’s being grateful to R for ϕ-ing implies Y’s being grateful that R ϕ-ed. According to some philosophers who hold this view, all instances of gratitude to, or “prepositional gratitude,” are also instances of gratitude that, or “propositional gratitude.” These philosophers believe there is a single unified concept of gratitude, a phenomenon that is essentially gratitude that, and whose manifestations sometimes have additional features that make them instances of gratitude to as well. In this article, I show that view to be mistaken. I base my argument on two hypothetical cases, in each of which a beneficiary, Y, is grateful to a benefactor, R, for ϕ-ing, but not grateful that R ϕ-ed. Generalizing from those cases and other cases of gratitude, I argue that prepositional gratitude is the proper response to benevolence-motivated action and propositional gratitude consists in a beneficiary’s judging a state of affairs to be valuable for himself and welcoming that state of affairs. Because not every instance of a benefactor’s acting benevolently toward a beneficiary is something that beneficiary finds valuable for himself and welcomes, it is possible to be grateful to a benefactor for ϕ-ing but not grateful that she ϕ-ed. Prepositional gratitude and propositional gratitude can each occur without the other and are thus two distinct phenomena. I conclude by explaining the importance of accurately understanding the relationship between prepositional gratitude and propositional gratitude.

This article investigates a puzzle about gratitude—the proper response, in a beneficiary, to an act of benevolence from a benefactor. The puzzle arises from three platitudes about gratitude: 1) the beneficiary has certain obligations of gratitude; 2) these obligations are owed to the benefactor; and 3) the benefactor has no right to the fulfillment of these obligations. These platitudes suggest that gratitude is a counterexample to the “correlativity thesis” in the moral domain: the claim that strict moral obligations correlate to moral rights on the part of the person to whom the obligation is owed. The goal of this chapter is to determine whether the three gratitude platitudes are true, and, if they are, what they tell us about the correlativity thesis. Sections 1 through 3 argue for the truth of each of the platitudes. It is then argued that while benefactors lack standing to demand, they do possess an imperfect right to gratitude: a special and morally significant standing to remonstrate with ungrateful beneficiaries. These facts suggest the following modification of the standard correlativity thesis: moral obligations entail moral rights on the part of the person to whom they are owed, which may be perfect (demandable) or imperfect.

Nathan Wood

Rachel Carson begins her revolutionary book Silent Spring with a quote from E.B. White that reads “we would stand a better chance of survival if we accommodated ourselves to this planet and viewed it appreciatively.” While White’s advice can account for an instrumental relationship towards nature, I believe that the more important relationship offered in his recommendation is one of appreciation or gratitude. The important point to recognize in the deeper layer of White’s quote is that attempting to adapt ourselves to the planet involves first recognizing the planet as something more than a mere tool or instrument to be bent into shape for human needs, which implies that the planet has some kind of value independent of our human needs. This raises a problem with regard to White’s recommendation understood as imploring us to take up an attitude of gratitude because gratitude seems to have an inescapable instrumental dimension to its meaning, i.e. I can only appreciate or be grateful for receiving a benefit of one sort or another. If this is true, then gratitude cannot address what it means to respect the value of nature in anything but instrumental terms. This would appear to be a fatal blow to considering gratitude as an environmental virtue. However, on the other hand, It seems perfectly reasonable to say that one is grateful for the existence of sunsets over ocean waters or the diversity and variety of plants and animals in nature. If we are good Stoics, then it might even make sense to say that we are grateful for the kosmos in general. At a basic experiential level it seems possible to take White’s advice and view nature appreciatively with a sense of gratitude for its existence as what it is, but how can we make sense of this non-instrumental dimension of gratitude? This paper aims to develop a conception of gratitude as an especially unique kind of environmental virtue compatible with White’s advice to view nature appreciatively by valuing its unique and non-instrumental value. In reconstructing the conception of gratitude I will incorporate Simon Hailwood’s “otherness view” of environmental ethics because it offers a promising approach towards understanding how to value nature non-instrumentally and, thus, the conception of gratitude as an environmental virtue offered here will emphasize the role of nature’s “otherness.” The notion of “otherness” is a difficult and complicated concept and this paper will clarify how we can speak coherently of the otherness in nature in a similar way that we speak of our fellow human beings as Other. Adopting this perspective is important for recognizing the difficult balance we must maintain in respecting nature’s otherness on the one hand while also valuing our shared commonalities and interdependence on the other.

Mark E. Jonas

Patricia White (Stud Philos Educ 18:43–52, 1999) argues that the virtue gratitude is essential to a flourishing democracy because it helps foster universal and reciprocal amity between citizens. Citizens who participate in this reciprocal relationship ought to be encouraged to recognize that “much that people do does in fact help to make communal civic life less brutish, pleasanter and more flourishing.” This is the case even when the majority of citizens do not intentionally seek to make civic life better for others. Were citizens to recognize the appropriateness of gratitude in these situations, the bonds of our democratic communities would be strengthened. In this paper, I examine White’s argument more carefully, arguing that it fails to address adequately the difficulties that arise when we attempt to encourage the virtue of gratitude in our students. To address these difficulties, I turn to an unlikely source for democratic inspiration: Friedrich Nietzsche. In spite of his well-known anti-democratic sentiments, Nietzsche offers democratic citizens insights into the social value of gratitude. I argue that Nietzsche’s ideas resolve the educational difficulties in White’s argument and viably establish gratitude as an important democratic virtue that ought to be cultivated.

Journal of Moral Education

Liz Jackson

In philosophical and psychological literature, gratitude has normally been promoted as beneficial to oneself and others and as morally good. Being grateful for what you have is conceived as virtuous, while acts expressing gratefulness to those who have benefited you is often regarded as morally praiseworthy, if not morally expected. However, critical interrogations of the moral status of gratitude should also frame the possible cultivation of gratitude in moral education. This essay focuses on whether gratitude should be regarded as morally ideal, praiseworthy, or expected in contexts marked by social inequity and injustice. It considers competing articulations of gratitude in philosophical and psychological research and how gratitude can be conceived in some cases as praiseworthy and in others as potentially problematic. Finally it considers the implications of a multipronged view of gratitude for teaching for and about gratitude in social justice education.

In the world of human resource management employees that deliberately " withhold effort " on the job are called " production deviants ". The implication is that workers are under a duty to perform as best they can, but why should we accept this? Three answers are presented and interrogated. The first says that employees who withhold effort are guilty of " time-banditry " or theft from their employers. The second says that withholding effort harms one's colleagues or co-workers. The third suggests that employees owe their employers a debt of gratitude, whose discharge requires that they be as productive as they reasonably can be.

Juan D Acosta

M.A Thesis (University of Bern, 2018)

David Bradshaw

Contains eleven papers delivered at a conference of this title at the University of Notre Dame in May 2012.

Walter Schaller

Bryan Bannon

This paper argues that environmental virtue ethics requires the adoption of an ethical ideal in order to guide the identification and practice of virtues. I recommend friendship as one such ideal due to emphasis such an ideal places upon the quality of the relationship with nature rather than the evaluation of individual actions. After describing the value of friendship as an ethical ideal, I respond to some of the objections that have been raised against it in the context of environmental virtue.

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The Power of Gratitude

“The moment one gives close attention to anything, even a blade of grass, it becomes a mysterious, awesome, indescribably magnificent world in itself.” Henry Miller

To notice the intricate beauty in the world around us and to be grateful for such beauty is a powerful tool. It’s a skill that requires time, conscious thought, repetition and modelling. It can be a powerful contributor to a more positive outlook on life and a gateway to deeper connection to the natural world.

It’s only fitting I start this blog by sharing my own gratitude. I share gratitude for the connection of community, for my family and friends who keep me grounded and catch my stories. For the moments of laughter that keep the mood light and joyous. Gratitude for birdsong and the sounds that fill the trees throughout the day and for the changing colours of the leaves that signify a move through seasons. Gratitude for the ability to connect through online tools and for the platform to share and inspire.

What is gratitude?

Gratitude, or the art of giving thanks, is a tradition that spans back through time and culture. It’s a simple process of noticing and being thankful for the things around us – people, trees, animals, objects, experiences, feelings and emotions – anything really. Gratitude is a process, a way of being mindful and opening up awareness to our surroundings, to past, present and future events, and to our experiences whether they be physical, emotional or cognitive.

In a nutshell, to me, gratitude can simply mean, ‘the importance of seeing the positives.’ Consciously bringing a practice of gratitude to our lives supports us balance the negatives we are fed through various areas of our lives and develop a ‘re-patterning’ of our mind to notice joy and connection.

A quick challenge to demonstrate: Take a moment to notice all the blue things in your current surroundings. Now find things that are triangular. Do they stick out? The more you see, the easier it is to see more .

When we bring conscious thought to something specific, we notice it more. This is similar to the old conundrum of getting every red light when we are running late. The more we focus on a particular thought or idea, the more prevalent it appears to be in our consciousness. Following this theory, it makes sense that the more we bring conscious thought and practice to the art of gratitude, the more things we will have to be grateful for, and the more we will notice.

“… gratitude makes us appreciate the value of something, and when we appreciate the value of something, we extract more benefits from it; we’re less likely to take it for granted.” Robert Emmons

A process of deep nature connection

“Taking a moment to see the grace in elements of the natural world – frogs, rain, berries or the sun – deepens our relationship with each one. Thanksgiving reinforces the interdependence of all living things and their ground of being and reminds us of our kinship with nature.” Jon Young

Here at Educated by Nature we follow the work of the 8 Shields Institute to inspire and guide our programs, practice and even our daily routines and rhythms. Within the deep nature connection movement, gratitude (or the art of thanksgiving) is considered a core routine and an important part of the process to deepen our connection with nature .

It’s an important part of the nature connection process because it builds awareness too! As we delve deeper into the practice of giving gratitude, we become more aware of the intricacies of the natural world and our surroundings. As an example, the more we share gratitude for the rain, we delve deeper and start to become aware of and grateful for, let’s say, the smell of the first rain (known as petrichor), for the microbes in the soil that are awoken by rain, for the dew drops in the morning light and so on.

David Sobel is quoted as saying that we need to, ‘ give children a chance to love the earth before we ask them to save it. ’ It’s possible that the art of gratitude is a simple daily routine we can support children to develop in order to forge deep connections with the natural world and build those bonds that truly help them love the earth.

Helping kids give gratitude

Gratitude plays an incredibly large role in our programs and staff team philosophy. We also love how, with a little bit of encouragement and modelling, children quickly get into a process of sharing gratitude when we offer space for it at our programs. All of our Educated by Nature programs, both face-to-face and online programs, include a process of gratitude. Whether it’s a formal process of beginning a session by sharing a ‘gratitude circle’ (each member of the group shares something they are grateful for before starting the main focus of the session), or subtle mentoring and modelling by our facilitators of gratitude for people’s ideas shared in a reflection or acknowledgement of the land we are meeting upon, giving gratitude is a process that needs to be supported.

We often witness the children who join us regularly are more comfortable at sharing gratitude and, more specifically, find it easier to identify a range of things they are grateful for. Their vocabulary for giving gratitude gradually expands.

To begin with, giving gratitude can be difficult – especially in a group – and the results can be a lot of ‘nothing’, ‘I don’t know’ or a repeat of the thing the last person said. But when we really open up to the art of giving gratitude and support its development, we see more complex and heartfelt messages of thanks.

“The social benefits are especially significant here because, after all, gratitude is a social emotion. I see it as a relationship-strengthening emotion because it requires us to see how we’ve been supported and affirmed by other people.”   Robert Emmons

The effects of gratitude on the brain

There’s a whole sea of scientific research into the effects of gratitude on the brain, the body, on moods, productivity, resilience and so much more. We came across a paper written by Clinical Psychologist, Madhullena Roy Chowdhury, which speaks to a raft of the underlying benefits to developing regular practices surrounding gratitude and giving thanks. This one quote really stood out to us.

“When we express gratitude and receive the same, our brain releases dopamine and serotonin, the two crucial neurotransmitters responsible for our emotions, and they make us feel ‘good’. They enhance our mood immediately, making us feel happy from the inside. By consciously practicing gratitude everyday, we can help these neural pathways to strengthen themselves and ultimately create a permanent grateful and positive nature within ourselves.”   Madhuleena Roy Chowdhury, BA https://positivepsychology.com/neuroscience-of-gratitude/

The different levels of gratitude

This wonderful video covers the four levels of gratitude: Notice, Think, Feel and Do. It provides some simple examples of how to support children to develop the skill of giving gratitude.

Gratitude inspiration

There are many wonderful resources out there for developing family rituals of gratitude. We recommend you find 6 minutes to watch this short film.

“Today. It’s given to you. It’s a gift. It’s the only gift that you have right now, and the only appropriate response is gratefulness.”

Tips for gratitude: setting a routine

Gratitude continues to be a crucial element of the philosophy behind Educated by Nature in its programs for families, children, teachers and the wider community. It’s part of the fabric of our staff team, underpinning all our interactions and contributing to the strong bond we have as a community as passionate nature mentors and educators. We hope you can find opportunity for this process in your family, in your classroom, in your workplace and witness firsthand the power of gratitude.

Here are some simple tips for bringing gratitude practices into your life and supporting children to develop a language of gratitude.

Find ten things Build a ritual into your morning routine of finding ten things you are grateful for relating to the previous day or the day ahead. Make them a different ten each day!

Around the dinner table A common family ritual around the dinner table is to provide space for each family member to share something they were grateful for that day. This can often be framed as, ‘What made you smile today?’ and then build in the terminology of gratitude.

Visiting family or friends When you visit a friend or arrive at a family gathering could you share your gratitude with these members of your community. It might be gratitude for them, the person who has invited you over, for providing a meal, or for the gift of time.

Set the tone Before starting a discussion with a friend, partner, colleague, set a positive tone by beginning with something you are each grateful for!

Gratitude walk – what do you notice? Children, especially young children, can be squirrel-like, often finding small treasures along their journeys and adventures. Be specific about modelling the language of gratitude. ‘Wow, I’m grateful for those intricate leaf patterns I can see in this tree’, ‘Oh can you hear those magpies warbling? I’m so grateful for their song that makes me smile every time I hear them.’

Sing! Music is a wonderful way to give gratitude. Maybe you have a family song about thanks and noticing the small things.

Journaling Encourage your children (and model this process yourself) to journal each day. The process of physically recording the things we are grateful for helps to create stronger bonds in our minds and hearts. A tool so help with this process is the Happy Self Journal whose mission is to be,  “A daily journal for children to promote happiness, develop positive habits and nurture enquiring minds.”

A Gratitude Tree If you have a large plant in your home, or maybe place for a beautiful stick in a pot of sand, use this to display leaves of gratitude. Write things you are grateful for on a leaf and tie it to the branches of the tree as a daily reminder to you and your family. You could even set this tree outside on your letterbox and provide inspiration for your neighbours and community. Invite them as they walk past to add to your tree!

A Gratitude Jar A dear friend of mine gifted me a beautiful glass jar for Christmas with clear instructions – “Each day write down what you are grateful for and place it in the jar.” She also has a jar. At the end of the year we plan to open the jars together and reflect on the whole year through the lens of gratitude.

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• climate change

How Gratitude Can Help Combat Climate Change

C limate change is the defining issue of our era. World leaders have come together to align on global goals, companies are judged by their environmental impact, and millions of ordinary people have marched in the streets . Yet, progress remains slow and major questions outstanding . Will government commitments and investments materialize? Will markets adapt and technologies emerge rapidly enough? Will apathy and fatalism set in?

As the COP26 climate change conference closes in Glasgow , we know that the world is not on track to achieve the emissions goals of the 2015 Paris Agreement. In addition to governmental action, market incentives, and technological innovation, we must also use the full complement of unique human capacities to address this planet-wide problem.

Fortunately, behavioral and psychological research indicates a powerful path forward. We can change how we talk, think, and feel about the natural world. As a first step we must acknowledge the reasons that humans are not well equipped to identify climate change as an important and urgent imperative. We are less attuned to assign moral judgement to unintentional or seemingly blameless actions, such driving our cars to visit family or powering our lights. People are also reluctant to engage with problems that imply that they themselves may bear some level of guilt, even indirectly. And human beings particularly struggle with problems that involve long time horizons, faraway places, or uncertain outcomes. Since it doesn’t come naturally to us, a special effort is required.

Researchers have identified a variety of communications techniques to help us change the way we talk about climate change. These include a focus on expanding people’s group identity (focusing on similarities rather than differences), highlighting positive social norms, and, perhaps most importantly, using existing cultural frameworks when we talk about the need to combat climate change. Rather than seeking to create new values around climate change, we can leverage existing cultural traditions that already engage deeply with environmental issues.

A prime example of this approach is Pope Francis’ groundbreaking 2015 encyclical Laudato Si’ , where he writes about the care for our common home by our common family. He also talks about gratitude in the Laudato Si , relating the emotional and moral lessons we learn in our families to our relationship with the natural world. “In the family we first learn how to show love and respect for life….to say ‘thank you’ as an expression of genuine gratitude for what we have been given, to control our aggressivity and greed, and to ask forgiveness when we have caused harm.” Here Pope Francis invites us to see action on climate change as an opportunity to practice natural virtues like gratitude, care, and forgiveness. We think there is also an opportunity to connect this ancient wisdom to cutting-edge science to change the way we act and talk about climate change.

Engaging Gratitude

​Gratitude is the natural response to benevolence, whether that benefactor is a stranger, a loved one, the planet, or the divine. When grateful we affirm that we have received an unearned good and recognize that this good comes from outside of us. Gratitude is a way of being that is grounded in the invitation to see life as a gift. It comes with the realization that these gifts are not to be squandered. We look up and we look out and see how our lives are sustained and supported by forces that transcend our individual lives. We see that life provides sufficiency and surplus. We remember how we are bound to the world that surrounds us.

Significantly, gratitude can potently drive environmental conservation, the reduced consumption of resources, and other forms of environmentally responsible action. We humans rely heavily on nature’s benefits, and feeling grateful to nature for its provisions and as a result wanting to protect nature in return is commonplace. During the 30X30 Challenge campaign in May 2016 , for instance, nearly 13,000 individuals, 821 schools, and 463 workplaces from 68 countries took part to write “love letters” and “thank you letters” to nature. Law professor Elizabeth Loder defines environmental gratitude as “a finely tuned propensity to notice and feel grateful for one’s surroundings on a regular basis, which generates pervasive attitudes of concern for planetary welfare and commitment to contribute ecological benefits to the extent of one’s ability.” And examples of gratitude toward the environment are familiar.

Many cultures express motifs of the environment as teacher and healer, and all of the world’s religions teach the importance of reverence and gratitude for earth’s gifts. It is not a foreign notion to express gratitude for our survival and the gifts we enjoy in the face of suffering from natural forces like storms and earthquakes. A sense of gratitude for all of nature allows us to reframe our perspective on these nature-related “acts of God.”

Furthermore, many aspects of nature are distant and inaccessible. Gratitude can help us take environmental processes and systems that are abstract or hidden beyond our view less for granted. Insomuch as gratitude implies living in celebration, the healing of disconnection, and preserving and protecting what we most treasure, according to philosopher Nathan Wood, it has a unique advantage as a human virtue in that it can function both as “an attitude of thankfulness in response to a benefit received” and in a non-instrumental sense as “an active appreciation that something is the way it is.”

Most importantly, gratitude is an action word. It is not passive. Grateful people are “trustees,” caretakers of that which has been entrusted to them. Ingratitude, conversely, is a failure to preserve and protect the gifts that one has received or has been entrusted with. In a set of remarkable new studies research has shown that gratitude drives sustainable actions including the extraction of fewer resources from a common pool in an economic game. People who experience environmental gratitude are morally concerned and intrinsically motivated to act responsibly. They actively strive to tend the landscape out of a sense of reciprocity and attune themselves to the countless ways in which our planet supports and sustains, nourishes and provides the means for us to flourish.

Gratitude and Flourishing

Gratitude is vital for individual and collective flourishing . The big questions of “What virtues should we nurture and how should we act?” “Under what conditions—cultural, political, and natural—should we aim to live?” and “What kinds of emotions should mark and energize our lives?” can be summed up as a single fundamental question: “What does it mean to flourish?” This question has occupied human beings intensely for millennia. Indeed, it is in many ways the core concern of many disparate fields from philosophy and theology to biology and economics. According to epidemiologist and director of the Human Flourishing Program at Harvard’s School of Public Health, Tyler VanderWheele, flourishing itself may be understood as a state in which all aspects of a person’s life are good. One thing is clear: that the capacity for human flourishing is surely limited under the extremes of climate change. So what can be done? At a minimum, we can cultivate gratitude as an action at the core of the struggle against climate change. Everyone from a farmer in Indiana to a financier in Hong Kong to the COP26 negotiators should seek to incorporate gratitude into their thinking by asking themselves these questions:

• What are specific ways in which environmental gratitude motivates, inspires, and drives behavior conducive to generating ecological action in the service of planetary welfare?
• How can the related emotions of awe and wonder be promoted to generate greater connection and appreciation for the natural world?
• How do we appropriately reciprocate the generosity of the gifts we have received from nature?
• How might the presence of grateful individuals within a larger group reduce the tragedy of the commons?
• Is negligence or destruction of the environment a sign of ingratitude for the gift of life itself?
• How do implicit beliefs about the world’s basic qualities , know as “primals” (abundant or barren, enticing or dangerous, regenerative or improvable) influence environmentally responsible action?
• In what ways is human flourishing predicated upon biological flourishing?
• How does gratitude for the past and present influence generative action directed toward maximizing the flourishing of future generations?

Gratitude alone will not restore biodiversity or halt sea temperature increase, but it seems unlikely that we can solve any significant environmental problems without it.

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Updates 10 Reasons To Thank Nature

November 24, 2021

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This holiday season, let's take a moment to thank the one entity that rarely gets the full measure of gratitude it deserves: Nature. Nature-based solutions to the global environmental challenges we face are at the heart of WCS’s mission to save wildlife and wild places. Strategies designed to keep nature intact and undegraded help it to continue performing the many ecosystem services so critical to our survival—from storing carbon and protecting biodiversity to containing pandemic disease and sustaining the livelihoods of people in communities across the globe.

Here are just 10 reasons to express appreciation for nature .

Regulating the Climate

Forests globally are removing over 11 billion tons of CO2 emissions from the atmosphere each year, effectively sponging up nearly 1/3 of our carbon pollution and preventing the global climate from being at least 0.5 a degree Celsius warmer than it is today.

Tropical forests also cool the planet by using solar radiation to drive transpiration of water from their leaves, contributing to rainfall that sustains not only those forests but also downwind agriculture and hydroelectricity generation. Without their tropical forests, equatorial regions will dry out and heat up and some of them could become uninhabitable.

If we stop deforesting and degrading forests, and restore natural ecosystems in priority regions, forests can do even more to reduce climate change and provide both people and wildlife with the resources we’ll need to adapt to changes we’re already experiencing.

Providing access to clean water

At a time when close to a billion people on Earth lack access to clean water, watersheds supply water for drinking, agriculture and manufacturing, and recreation, while providing habitat for wildlife and plants. Wetlands and forests play a critical role in filtering water, while plants remove dangerous levels of nitrogen and phosphorus found in fertilizer runoff.

Providing storm, flood, and erosion resilience

Species such as oysters both filter water and provide natural resilience to storms. Adult oysters can filter up to 50 gallons of water a day and oyster reefs provide a cushion against large waves and rising tides. In so doing, they reduce flooding and prevent shoreline erosion. Other coastal ecosystems such as coral reefs and mangroves likewise protect against storm surges and growing sea level rise.

Providing Food Security

With its sustainable development goals (SDGs), the United Nations set a target date of 2030 to end global hunger. While we may not meet that goal, there is no question that nature plays an essential role in ensuring food security for millions of people. With proper management, we can sustain fisheries for the approximately 40% of the world’s population that relies on fish as a significant source of animal protein.

Preventing zoonotic pandemics

The World Health Organization finds that 75 percent of new infectious diseases in the past decade are zoonotic, or transmitted between animals and people. That trend has drawn attention to the degradation of natural landscapes for roads, infrastructure, development, and through commercial wildlife trade for human consumption—exposing us to previously contained pathogens for which we have no natural immunity.

Sustaining livelihoods

Healthy landscapes and seascapes play a pivotal role in supporting the livelihoods of hundreds of millions of people across the globe. Roughly 60 million people are engaged in fishing-related jobs, while the ecotourism industry is valued at more than $200 billion dollars by varying estimates. Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities rely on nature for income-generating activities from fishing, wool production, honey harvesting and other sustainable uses.

Pollinating crops

A wide range of species that includes both insects--bees, wasps, flies, butterflies, beetles and moths—and bats pollinate the crops that we all depend upon for our survival. Close to 90 percent of all flowering plants and 75 percent of the world's food crops rely on these pollinators entirely or in part, at a time when they face growing threats like colony collapse disorder.

Saving Species

At a time when the United Nations estimates that some 1 million species face the threat of extinction, intact natural areas are essential to ecosystem integrity and the protection of biodiversity. We understand today the connection between biodiversity, climate change, and pandemic disease more clearly than ever. When we protect nature, we protect ourselves .

Sourcing new medicines

Close to half of the approved drugs during the last 30 years were derived either directly or indirectly from natural products. Paclitaxel, isolated from yew tree bark, is one of the WHO’s “Essential Medicines” for cancer treatment. Exenatide, a synthesized version of a compound in Gila monster saliva, helps some two million people with type 2 diabetes.

Supporting our psychological health

Growing research suggests a close relationship between time spent in nature and reduced stress, anxiety, and depression. Nature sounds can lower blood pressure and levels of the stress hormone cortisol, thus reducing the body's fight-or-flight response. The effect appears to be especially strong for those who have suffered loss, as so many have this year due to the COVID pandemic.

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Gratitude Essay

500 words essay on gratitude.

Gratitude is a beautiful way of enriching our lives. It refers to the feeling and attitude of appreciation and thankfulness for the good which we receive in life. It has been proven scientifically that when we express our gratefulness to other people, we feel happier and calmer. Thus, it allows goodness to enter our lives. For instance, when a stranger holds the door for you or greets you, it makes you feel happy. Thus, a gratitude essay will teach us how advantageous gratitude is.

Advantages of Gratitude

Gratitude can have a lot of advantages to our personal as well as social life. First of all, it strengthens our relationship with others. When you have a thankful feeling, it will strengthen the bond with the other party and enhance the trust factor and feeling of respect and love .

Moreover, it also makes us happy. When we express gratitude or receive it, we feel happy either way. As a result, people who have gratitude do not stress out a lot. Similarly, being full of gratitude makes society sensible.

In other words, people become considerate and never leave a chance to say thank you to others. Thus, it helps society to progress in the right direction with the right tools needed for the development of it.

Most importantly, gratitude reduces comparisons and promotes acknowledgement. When we become thankful, we do not compare ourselves to others. Thus, it helps us acknowledge our own achievements and blessings and remain content.

How to Practice Gratitude

There are a lot of ways through which we can practice gratitude. Some of the most effective ones include making a note of every good thing which happens to us every day. Moreover, also note the people behind it.

This will help you to return the favour at an appropriate time. Never forget to return this favour as they deserve it too. Moreover, always make sure to appreciate everything in life ranging from nature to animals .

We are lucky enough to have animals, green plants, fresh air and much more. Thus, never stop acknowledging the importance of these essential things. Moreover, always remember to say thank you to different community helpers.

It can be anyone, whether your gardener or sweeper or even the police officers. Make sure you thank them for their service whenever it is possible for you. Remember that to wake up every day is no less than a blessing itself.

So, make sure to be grateful for a new day and thank the almighty for making you wiser and stronger with each passing day. Most importantly, try to avoid complaining about things when they don’t go your way. You don’t know about the blessing behind it.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

Conclusion of Gratitude Essay

All in all, gratitude is the most essential human expression which proves that humans are sensible and have emotions. Moreover, this emotion does not just limit to humans but also animals. Often, we see then express their gratitude and return the favour. Thus, we must always express our gratitude.

FAQ of Gratitude Essay

Question 1: Why is gratitude important?

Answer 1: Gratitude is strongly and constantly connected with greater happiness. It is what helps people feel more positive emotions, appreciate good experiences, advance their health, deal with adversity, and build strong relationships.

Question 2: How can gratitude change your life?

Answer 2: Gratitude can change your life as it makes you appreciate what you have rather than what you don’t have. It can change your life  because it is the single most powerful source of inspiration that any individual can tap into if they simply stop and pay attention to the simplistic beauty and miracle of life.

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A Letter Of Gratitude To Mother Nature

Aliza Lapierre writes a letter of gratitude to Mother Nature.

Thank you for your vegetation. The forests, woodlands, grasslands, and wetlands create so many necessities for human survival. Your vast environment provides us with oxygen, sustains us with food, and provides medicine to heal our bodies. Your timber provides wood for our shelter and your natural fibers create our clothing.

Thank you for your landforms. The mountains, valleys, canyons, plateaus, and shorelines provide terrain for me to explore on my own two feet. I come as I am, and you support and comfort me. At times, you challenge me in ways I question, but when I find my way to the other side, I feel stronger and appreciative.

Thank you for your natural symphony and dark night skies. Pitching my tent in your wilderness and listening to the natural soundscapes fills me with internal peace. Lying on my back under the endless canvas of dark sky provides an opportunity to be mindful and mindless. These moments of darkness and light are often just regarded as times of day, but when I slow down, I realize how they are essential to life.

Thank you for your abundance of color. In the morning, the magnificent spectrum of colors that the rising sun provides a fresh start to write my story. On clear days, your extensive blue-bird sky seems never-ending. My eye can see as far as my imagination will allow it. On other days, the unembellished tones of the clouds provide an opportunity for a different perception, creating an interplay of lightness and darkness.

Thank you for your seasons. From year to year, from day to day, and from moment to moment you never look the same. This constant change helps me accept that I too am ever-changing. Whether it is due to aging, the choices I make, or outside factors, change is a part of life. Seeing it with you helps me see it within myself. You are beautiful even on your stormy days, I feel your warmth even in the bitter cold, and your brightest days fill me with the energy to continue through the highs and lows of each of your seasons.

I envision that we will continue to get to know each other on a more intimate level. This is important to me because I want to better understand you, and to learn how to help take better care of you. This is important because you are a gift, you are priceless, and you have the ability to provide and teach. You are a being that fills me with hope, curiosity, and desire. The more I learn, the more I explore, the better I understand how I can no longer take you for granted. Our repeated violations against your air, soils, forests, rivers, lakes, and biodiversity are unacceptable.

I do admit that I have not always made choices that were in your best interest, but I hope that I can do my part to walk more gently, consistently give back, and listen when you have lessons and messages to share. I promise you I am making the commitment to do my part as an individual and as a part of the collective movement to preserve, protect, and cherish you.

With gratitude (and a whole lot more), Aliza

Call for Comments (from Meghan)

If you were to write your own letter of gratitude to nature, what would it say?

Photo courtesy of Aliza Lapierre.

Related articles:

• Mother Nature Is A Woman An excerpt from the book 'Daughters of Distance' by Vanessa Runs about the feminine qualities of nature....
• ‘No:’ A Two-Letter Word Aliza Lapierre writes about the struggle to maintain balance when life is busy....
• Gratitude Joe Grant ponders the concept of gratitude during a morning run....

Essays About Gratitude: Top 5 Examples and 7 Writing Prompts

Writing essays about gratitude is a way to show appreciation and recognize kindness. See our top examples and prompts you can use as a guide for your essay.

I’m not outspoken, and everyone close to me knows this. However, this one time, a family friend visited us and gave me a set of paintbrushes for my birthday. I thanked them, but that didn’t feel enough as they went out of their way to pick high-quality brushes and deliver them in person, even if we weren’t close. That kind lady wanted me to pursue my interest in painting, and I have felt grateful to her ever since. 

For those like me who can’t fully express gratitude through words, it becomes an intimidating task to even write about it. After all, essays about gratitude require finesse and sincerity that are hard to prove through pen and paper.

5 Essay Examples

1. the expression of gratitude by writer rosalyn, 2. a good life is a gratitude, meaning, and love by anonymous on ivypanda.com, 3. the magical power of gratitude and saying ‘thank you’ by anonymous on gradesfixer.com, 4. essay on gratitude by anonymous on toppr.com  , 5. meaning and importance of gratitude by anonymous on mystudentsessay.com, 1. the true meaning of gratitude, 2. expressing gratitude, 3. the benefits of practicing gratitude, 4. culture and gratitude expression, 5. values and gratitude, 6. the boundaries of gratitude, 7. practicing gratitude: a day in my life.

“… Participants who expressed gratitude in a close relationship would have greater relationship satisfaction than those who did not express gratitude.”

The essay contains a compilation of information from various studies to discuss the effect of expressing gratitude verbally. Rosalyn discovers that the rate of relationship satisfaction increases after expressing gratitude and leads to lasting relationships and reduced divorce rates. 

Rosalyn notes how expressions of gratitude act as positive reinforcement, encouraging the recipient to be more inclined to agree to do favors. For instance, many sellers include gifts and discounts with purchases to express gratitude and cultivate repeat buyers.

“… A good life is a complex term with different meanings, but all the interpretations have a particular point in common – well-being is associated with gratitude, meaning, and love.”

The author defines the “good life” as spiritual contentment and shares their opinion and experiences as a clinical mental health counselor. They remark that gratefulness can signify healthy well-being since it means an individual is intent on what they have instead of what they don’t. Further, people filled with gratitude can find meaning in life in time and with practice. 

The counselor also mentions the importance of having someone who truly loves and cares for us to remind us to be grateful even in the darkest times of our lives. In conclusion, the writer reiterates that it’s complicated to define what a good life entails, but all definitions directly connect to gratitude, meaning, and love.

“I discovered a secret about life, and as a result of my discovery, one of the things I began to do was practice gratitude each day, to say “thank you!” more. As a result of this, everything in my life changed, and the more I practiced gratitude, the more miraculous were the result.”

To demonstrate the positive benefits of feeling and expressing gratitude, the author narrates their experiences in this short essay. They talk about their financial, relationship, and health problems and how they were all resolved when they started to be grateful. The writer considers this magical, but a change in their perception helped them overcome their problems.

“… Gratitude is the most essential human expression which proves that humans are sensible and have emotions. Moreover, this emotion does not just limit to humans but also animals. Often, we see them express their gratitude and return the favour.”

In this essay, the author identifies gratitude as a beautiful way of enriching our existence. It’s a vital skill that every person should learn and practice to invite goodness and get various benefits, such as stronger relationships and a happier outlook. The writer believes it’s crucial to always express gratitude to inspire others and remember that humans are emotional beings.

“Gratitude leads to feelings of happiness and satisfaction as it increases awareness that others have done something nice for you. As a result, gratitude and happiness become mutually reinforcing and build upon each other. Science shows that gratitude is a particular emotion, since it consists of a feeling of appreciation that does not require specific objects or actions which instigate it.”

This essay focuses on the importance and benefits of practicing gratitude which the author refers to as “the greatest gift to humanity.” Gratitude is vital as it helps us recognize positive and negative things to assist us in finding meaning and purpose in life. The author states that practicing mindfulness and meditation brings about gratitude that will improve various aspects of one’s life.

7 Prompts for Essays About Gratitude

Gratitude is one of the most salient topics to write about and discuss. It’s a positive emotion we feel whenever we receive something that demonstrates the giver’s sincerity. Use this prompt to discuss the meaning of gratitude with your readers in two ways. First, explain its definition according to dictionaries and experts. Then use your personal experiences to illustrate what gratitude means to you.

“Thank you!” is a simple but effective phrase to express appreciation to those who try to improve your day. For this prompt, list more ways to express gratitude through verbal communication or actions. Add tips on showing gratitude while considering important factors such as the event or context, relationship to the recipient, and suitability of the method.

Focus your essay on the advantages one can get from practicing gratitude; use this prompt to encourage your readers to acknowledge the good things happening to them. Provide relevant research and examples that show the benefits of demonstrating gratitude.

For help with this topic, read our guide explaining what is persuasive writing .

The environment an individual grows up in plays a big part in how they express gratitude. Explore different cultures worldwide and discuss how beliefs, religion, and culture can affect how groups display gratefulness. Show your reader’s how different cultures communicate gratitude, including the common reasons they do so. Then, share how you were taught to convey gratitude in your culture.

Exercising gratitude trains us to establish positive values such as enthusiasm and optimism. Use this prompt to identify and discuss the values ​​one can gain from learning about gratitude. Discuss the values you developed while practicing gratitude to make your essay relatable. You might also be interested in these essays about overcoming challenges .

Although gratitude is one of the most positive emotions we can experience, it should still be practiced within healthy boundaries. Such limitations should be applied when a person develops extreme beliefs involving gratitude. An example is over-optimism, where an individual becomes unrealistically optimistic to the point that they ignore the existence of their problems. In your essay, discuss how to practice gratitude in a way that positively influences your life.

In this essay, reflect on a typical day in your life and highlight the parts that make you feel thankful. This prompt will help you appreciate the trivial things in your life and teach your readers how to treasure even the minor things in their lives. For example, having the opportunity to wake up and live another day already deserves your gratitude. Discuss all the things that you are grateful for in this heartfelt essay.

Take your essay to the next level with the best essay checkers .

Maria Caballero is a freelance writer who has been writing since high school. She believes that to be a writer doesn't only refer to excellent syntax and semantics but also knowing how to weave words together to communicate to any reader effectively.

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Home — Essay Samples — Life — Gratitude — Essence of Gratitude: the Power of Appreciation

Essence of Gratitude: The Power of Appreciation

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Published: Sep 7, 2023

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What is Gratitude and Why Is It So Important?

Do you turn to junk food, self-medication, shopping, etc.?

One healthy, powerful, and free strategy to rise from this temporary emotional state is to practice gratitude.

Gratitude turns what little you have into abundance. Gratitude is so much more than saying thank you. Gratitude changes your perspective of your world.

But yet you wonder how you can find the positive when everything seems so bleak? Read on to learn how to identify the positive when it seems there is nothing to be grateful for. We’ll also explain the importance of gratitude, how to show it to others, and share gratitude and appreciation videos.

Before you continue, we thought you might like to download our three Gratitude Exercises for free . These detailed, science-based exercises will help you or your clients connect to more positive emotions and enjoy the benefits of gratitude.

This Article Contains:

What is gratitude – its meaning & definition, gratitude & positive psychology – what is the connection, why is it important to be grateful, the importance of gratitude in life, the importance of thanksgiving, how to show gratitude and appreciation, 5 youtube gratitude videos, a take-home message.

Gratitude is an emotion similar to appreciation. The American Psychological Association (n.d.) more specifically defines this phenomenon as a sense of happiness and thankfulness in response to a fortunate happenstance or tangible gift.

Gratitude is both a state and a trait (Jans-Beken et al., 2020). Better explained, one can experience gratitude for someone or something at a certain moment in time, and someone experience gratitude more long-term as a positive character trait.

According to Dr. Robert Emmons, the feeling of gratitude involves two stages (Emmons & McCullough, 2003):

First comes the acknowledgment of goodness in one’s life. In a state of gratitude, we say yes to life. We affirm that, all in all, life is good and has elements that make it worth living. The acknowledgment that we have received something gratifies us, both by its presence and by the effort the giver put into choosing it.

Second, gratitude is recognizing that sources of this goodness lie outside the self. One can be grateful to our creator, other people, animals, and the world, but not to oneself. At this stage, we recognize the goodness in our lives and who to thank for it.

The two stages of gratitude comprise the recognition of the goodness in our lives and then how this goodness came to us. Through this process, we recognize the fortune of everything that improves our lives and ourselves.

Further, gratitude can be considered either a dispositional trait or a state of being.

As a trait, an individual practices gratitude as part of their daily life (McCullough et al., 2002), and it is considered a character strength . It is important to remember that gratitude is a strength that can be enhanced with awareness and practice.

When a person experiences the emotion from someone expressing gratitude for them, it is referred to as a state (Watkins et al., 2009).

As part of Seligman’s PERMA model , which includes positive emotion, engagement, relationships, meaning, and achievement, a key positive emotion includes gratitude (Lianov, 2021).

Robert Emmons has led positive psychology’s expansion of research on the importance of gratitude. Emmons has authored several papers on the psychology of gratitude, showing that being more grateful can lead to increased levels of wellbeing (Emmons & Crumpler, 2000).

Download 3 Free Gratitude Exercises (PDF)

These detailed, science-based exercises will equip you or your clients with tools to build daily gratitude habits, express more appreciation toward others, and experience more positive emotions in everyday life.

Download Download 3 Gratitude Tools (PDF)

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Passmore and Oades (2016) assert that as expectations have changed, gratitude has diminished in western society. Possessions and health are expectations for many individuals rather than considered personal ‘blessings’ that are appreciated. “Gratitude has, for many, been replaced by disappointment, anger, and resentment when these expected ‘blessings’ either do not appear or they disappear” (Passmore & Oades, 2016, p. 43).

We have learned gratitude helps people focus on the positive aspects of their life. Gratitude can help build and maintain relationships with others, resulting in hope, life satisfaction, and more proactive behaviors toward others (Passmore & Oades, 2016).

If you still aren’t convinced, you may wish to pick up one of the books suggested in our Gratitude Books article.

Gratitude has been found to be beneficially associated with social wellbeing, emotional wellbeing, and psychological wellbeing (Jans-Beken et al., 2020). It is no surprise that trait gratitude is an important “predictor of wellbeing and other desirable life outcomes” (Portocarrero et al., 2020, p. 6).

Gratitude appears to have a domino effect. If a person experiences gratitude, they are more likely to recognize the help and then later reciprocate that help (Wood et al., 2010). People who are thanked are presumably more apt to extend help to others in the future.

Likewise, people who are not thanked may not be expected to provide reciprocation in the future. The expression of gratitude is beneficial for both individuals and society (Bono et al., 2004).

Further, gratitude is an element in many religions. For example (Passmore & Oades, 2016),

• Buddhism – Gratitude is indicative of the concept of dependent origination, which implies that everything is interconnected. For Buddhists, awareness of our interdependent and interconnected existence evokes gratitude for the web of life that sustains us.
• Judaism – Individuals practicing Judaism may start the day with Modeh Ani, a short Hebrew blessing thanking God for life.
• Christianity – Christians denote gratitude to God by stating blessings. These blessings are said in a prayer form and are created for food, family, life, and any other blessings that God may grant.

What exactly is gratitude, and how can we experience more of it daily?

Gratitude is the act of recognizing and acknowledging the good things that happen, resulting in a state of appreciation (Sansone & Sansone, 2010).

Often when we consider what we are grateful for, overt and profound life experiences, circumstances, and events come to mind. We may feel grateful for our upbringing, family, job, good health, and the opportunity to gain an education. While recognizing and being grateful for these experiences is important, our gratitude practice must also venture below the surface.

Below the surface, we find the simple, everyday pleasures that often go unnoticed. This may be a great book we read, laughter with a friend, or even the joy of eating ice cream in the sunshine. Whatever these simple pleasures may be, consciously expressing our gratitude for them can help us grow our daily gratitude practice beyond the surface level.

We invite you to consider the full iceberg of gratitude, your fortunate life experiences, as well as simple daily pleasures.

If you are from North America, then cornucopia, turkey, Pilgrims, and Native Americans may come to mind when you mention the word ‘Thanksgiving.’ Thanksgiving is more broadly explained as a day to give thanks. Countries such as Grenada, Saint Lucia, and Liberia also celebrate Thanksgiving, while countries like Brazil and the Philippines celebrate it unofficially (Vicens, 2022).

The Netherlander town of Leiden and the Australian territory of Norfolk Island also celebrate this holiday (Vicens, 2022). Similarly, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Japan celebrate a fall harvest, where people also give thanks.

So why is there an entire holiday created for giving thanks?

For many, “Thanksgiving is a collective ritual that celebrates material abundance through feasting.” (Wallendorf & Arnould, 1991, p. 13). Thanksgiving is important because it is a designated time assigned to encourage us to pause to be mindful of the blessings we have. Many of us get so caught up in our day-to-day routines that we fail to stop and acknowledge our fortunes.

To demonstrate and celebrate gratitude, you don’t need a particular holiday to show thankfulness. Conveying gratitude should be practiced daily.

To improve your gratitude, reflect on how better you can show your appreciation to others. When verbally expressing gratitude to someone, consider reflecting on your emotions and on the effort involved. Here are some examples:

‘Your birthday gift to me makes me overjoyed. I appreciate the length you went to in order to find this limited edition book by my favorite author. I value that you know me so well and did this especially for me.’

‘Mom, I am grateful for the life you have given me. Even though it took 15 hours to deliver me and raising me was full of challenges, you have done the best you could and I appreciate that.’

‘Our Father in Heaven, you have blessed me with ten fingers and ten toes, eyes to see and ears to hear. I am grateful for the wonder of your creation and for sparing my life every day.’

For more examples, read our article How to Express Gratitude to Others .

Gratitude journal

A gratitude journal involves jotting down a few things that you are thankful for and can be done daily or weekly as you so choose. Keeping a gratitude journal is a good first step toward establishing gratitude, and it will help you identify and reflect on people, things, or events for which you are thankful.

Nawa and Yamagishi’s (2021) research involving university students concluded that completing a gratitude journal not only positively impacts academic motivation, it favorably influences goal-directed behavior in general.

In this study, 84 students were placed into either an active manipulation group (gratitude group) or a neutral control group. For two weeks, the active manipulation group was asked to list five things they were grateful for and evaluate various aspects of their daily lives, while the control group was only asked to do daily self-evaluations. Unsurprisingly, the gratitude group demonstrated significant enhancements in academic motivation.

You can make use of our gratitude journal article, which includes journal worksheets with prompts to guide you into the good habit of daily gratitude journaling.

Gratitude letter

Writing a gratitude letter is a form of written communication that conveys an appreciation for someone in your life. These effectively communicate the impact someone has had on our lives.

Further, the gratitude research conducted by Iodice et al. (2021) concluded that individuals who wrote about things they are grateful for showed better mood, coping, and physical health. In this study, participants were assigned to one of three groups: Group one wrote about things they were grateful for, group two wrote about daily hassles, and group three wrote about a neutral topic.

Within their review of literature, these researchers also cited Emmons and McCullough (2003), whose findings suggested that individuals who practiced gratitude by writing about things they are grateful for showed better mood, coping, and physical health than the other participants.

The gratitude visit

Take the gratitude letter a step further by visiting the person to whom you are giving the gratitude letter and reading it aloud to him or her. A study by Wood et al. (2010) suggests that gratitude visits are a practice that is even more beneficial than a gratitude letter and practitioners of this strategy reported more happiness.

In their preliminary research, Wood et al. (2010) referenced two studies involving gratitude visits. In a study by Seligman et al. (2005), adults from an internet sample were instructed to write and deliver their gratitude letter within 1-week. Those who went on the gratitude visit reported more happiness and less depression than the control group.

Another study by Froh, Kashdan et al., (2009; Froh, Yurkewicz et al., 2009) resulted in similar findings. A sample of children and adolescents from a parochial school were divided into two groups: a group who conducted a gratitude visit and a group who wrote about daily events. Findings indicated that the youth who experienced the gratitude condition reported greater gratitude and positive affect than the youth in the control condition.

As we know, meditation is a method for focusing attention (Pascoe et al., 2021). Pascoe et al. (2021) conducted a systematic review of studies assessing the impact of meditation on psychological processes. They found that meditation, does in fact, “decrease distress experienced resulting from psychological stressors by influencing psychological processes” (p. 3).

Although meditation doesn’t directly demonstrate gratitude towards others, meditation and focusing attention on people or things you are grateful for indicates appreciation to yourself, which could help to foster even more gratitude.

No matter how small or grand the gesture of gratitude is, it is essential to show thankfulness in our everyday lives. After all,

Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.

William Arthur Ward (Brainyquote.com, n.d.)

We have a dedicated article offering gratitude meditation guidance for you to peruse.

17 Exercises To Nurture Gratitude & Appreciation

Empower others with more hope, satisfaction, and fulfilling relationships with these 17 Gratitude & Appreciation Exercises [PDF] that harness the powerful benefits of gratitude.

Created by Experts. 100% Science-based.

These five handpicked gratitude videos will not only inspire you to practice gratefulness but also inform you of the importance of daily practicing this state or trait. If you’d like to enjoy an even greater selection, our blog post Best TED Talks And Videos on The Power of Gratitude shares over 30 excellent videos.

Gratitude is: A poem & animation – Macarena Luz Bianchi

Gratitude Is is a short, light-hearted poem accompanied by animation. This poem is also a full-color gift book available on Amazon as a highly-rated read. This would be a great video to share when beginning to discuss gratitude with a class.

The power of choosing gratitude – Tye Dutcher

Tye Dutcher, an international paralympic athlete, describes how gratitude changed and continues to change his life. After he experienced a horrifying accident at just 11 years old, Tye had a choice. He chose gratitude. He explains his thankfulness for what he has and the blessings he will receive.

The power of gratitude – Titan Man

If you practice gratitude daily, no matter how much or how little you have, you will be happy. This is the message Titan Man delivers in his video narrated by Oprah Winfrey. This video would be beneficial in serving as a daily reminder to show gratitude.

Gratitude is good for you – John Templeton Foundation

If you would like to know the additional benefits of gratitude , this short video by the John Templeton Foundation is fast-paced and engaging. Several strategies for growing gratitude are shared.

The power of gratitude – Psych2Go

Being grateful will make you healthier and happier. While you may have already gotten this message, this video explains the research conducted with adults and children that completed a type of gratitude journal. Gratitude in regard to mental health is discussed in greater detail.

Someone could have everything and still feel like they have nothing. Someone could have nothing but still be happy with what they have. Recognizing gratitude towards non-tangibles, such as health and relationships, is a good start.

As we have learned in this piece, gratitude has endless benefits for both individuals and society and has deep roots in positive psychology.

It can be identified in many religions, as well as in the secular world. It is crucial to understand that gratitude can be defined as both a state and a trait. Perhaps with the exercises provided in this article, you will be able to move from a grateful state to a healthy trait.

There are various ways to demonstrate gratitude. Regardless of the method you choose, it is critical to convey thankfulness. Additionally, you don’t need to wait for a holiday to show appreciation.

Gratitude is the key to a happy life and should be continuous, practiced daily. Another important takeaway is that gratitude can have a snowball effect. You never know the positive effects your gratefulness will have on others and the future impact it will have.

Gratitude is a perspective – it is a choice. We hope that you choose gratitude today and every day. We’d like to leave you with this quote,

“Gratitude is the ability to experience life as a gift.”

John Ortberg (Zito, 2022).

To read more inspirational gratitude quotes, kindly refer to this article by Barbara Bellise Zito .

Who or what are you grateful for? How are you going to convey this thankfulness? Please let us know in the comments, or better yet, let that person know! Until next time, please know that we are thankful for YOU, our gracious reader!

We hope you enjoyed reading this article. Don’t forget to download our three Gratitude Exercises for free .

• American Psychological Association. (n.d.). Gratitude . Retrieved from https://dictionary.apa.org/gratitude
• Bono, G., Emmons, R. A., & McCullough, M. E. (2004). Gratitude in practice and the practice of gratitude. Positive Psychology in Practice , 464, 481.
• Brainyquote.com. (n.d.). Retrieved on January 3, 2023 from https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/william_arthur_ward_105516
• Cregg, D. R., & Cheavens, J. S. (2021). Gratitude interventions: Effective self-help? A meta-analysis of the impact on symptoms of depression and anxiety. Journal of Happiness Studies , 22(1), 413-445.
• Emmons, R. A., & Crumpler, C. A. (2000). Gratitude as a human strength: Appraising the evidence. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology , 19(1), 56-69.
• Emmons, R. A., & McCullough, M. E. (2003). Counting blessings versus burdens: an experimental investigation of gratitude and subjective well-being in daily life. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology , 84(2), 377.
• Froh, J. J., Kashdan, T. B., Ozimkowski, K. M., & Miller, N. (2009). Who benefits the most from a gratitude intervention in children and adolescents? Examining positive affect as a moderator. Journal of Positive Psychology , 4, 408–422.
• Froh, J. J., Yurkewicz, C., & Kashdan, T. B. (2009). Gratitude and subjective well-being in early adolescence: Examining gender differences. Journal of Adolescence , 32, 633–650.
• Iodice, J. A., Malouff, J. M., & Schutte, N. S. (2021). The association between gratitude and depression: A meta-analysis. International Journal of Depression and Anxiety , 4(1).
• Jans-Beken, L., Jacobs, N., Janssens, M., Peeters, S., Reijnders, J., Lechner, L., & Lataster, J. (2020). Gratitude and health: An updated review. The Journal of Positive Psychology , 15(6), 743-782.
• Krause, N., Emmons, R. A., & Ironson, G. (2015). Benevolent images of God, gratitude, and physical health status. Journal of Religion & Health 54(4), 1503-1519.
• Lianov, L. (2021). A powerful antidote to physician burnout: intensive healthy lifestyle and positive psychology approaches. American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine , 15(5), 563-566.
• McCullough, M. E., Emmons, R. A., & Tsang, J. A. (2002). The grateful disposition: A conceptual and empirical topography. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 82(1), 112-127.
• Nawa, N. E., & Yamagishi, N. (2021). Enhanced academic motivation in university students following a 2-week online gratitude journal intervention. BMC psychology , 9(1), 1-16.
• Pascoe, M. C., de Manincor, M., Tseberja, J., Hallgren, M., Baldwin, P. A., & Parker, A. G. (2021). Psychobiological mechanisms underlying the mood benefits of meditation: A narrative review. Comprehensive Psychoneuroendocrinology , 6, 100037.
• Passmore, J., & Oades, L. G. (2016). Positive psychology techniques: Gratitude. The Coaching Psychologist , 12 (1). 34-35.
• Portocarrero, F. F., Gonzalez, K., & Ekema-Agbaw, M. (2020). A meta-analytic review of the relationship between dispositional gratitude and well-being. Personality and Individual Differences , 164, 110101.
• Sansone, R. A., & Sansone, L. A. (2010). Gratitude and well being: the benefits of appreciation.  Psychiatry (edgmont), 7(11) , 18.
• Seligman, M. E. P., Steen, T. A., Park, N., & Peterson, C. (2005). Positive psychology progress: Empirical validation of interventions. American Psychologist , 60, 410–421.
• Vicens, L. (2022). For all the blessings of this life: On worship as thanksgiving. J ournal of Analytic Theology , 10, 54-64.
• Wallendorf, M., & Arnould, E. J. (1991). “We gather together”: Consumption rituals of thanksgiving day. Journal of Consumer Research , 18(1), 13-31.
• Watkins, P. C., Van Gelder, M., & Frias, A. (2009). 41 Furthering the science of gratitude. Oxford Handbook of Positive Psychology , 437.
• Wood, A. M., Froh, J. J., & Geraghty, A. W. (2010). Gratitude and well-being: A review and theoretical integration. Clinical Psychology Review , 30(7), 890-905.
• Zito, B. (November, 8, 2022). 55 Best Gratitude Quotes – Short Quotes About Gratitude . Retrieved on January 3, 2023 from https://news.yahoo.com/55-best-gratitude-quotes-short-172941196.html

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Thank you for all the acknowledgement and the gratitude of the whole study. I know the positive effects and I see it as I practice it a lot and teach or be taught. And it has taught me a lot and I will benefit from it. I appreciate all the hard work you put into it. thank you

Gratitude is an important part for life it teaches you to be grateful and like what you have until it gets taken away.

Thank you! Very helpful in preparing for my workshop. Love the thoroughness and heartfelt pace of the article. It is easy to snarl at, or resist feeling gratitude.

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3 Gratitude Exercises Pack

Gratitude Essay

500+ words essay on be grateful.

During difficult times, it’s easy to feel frustrated or drained by life. Negative feelings and thoughts can creep in, which can make it difficult to see the positive things in life. However, one simple practice of gratitude can help to eliminate these feelings. We take a look at the importance of being grateful through this being grateful essay. Students can also use this essay to practise more essays on similar topics like gratitude, being grateful, being grateful etc. Doing so will improve their writing section and increase their scores in the English exam.

What is Gratitude?

The word gratitude is derived from the Latin word gratia, which means grace, graciousness, or gratefulness. The word gratitude encompasses all of these meanings. Gratitude is a feeling of appreciation or thanks. It is defined as “a sense of thankfulness and joy in response to receiving a gift, whether the gift is a tangible benefit from a specific other or a moment of peaceful bliss evoked by natural beauty”. With gratitude, people acknowledge the goodness in their lives.

There are different ways of expressing one’s thanks. Gratitude is one such emotion. People feel and express gratitude in multiple ways. Some of them apply it to the past by retrieving positive memories and being thankful for elements of childhood or past blessings. Some people are grateful for the present as they do not take good fortune for granted. Some people show gratitude for the future as they hope for a better future and maintain an optimistic attitude.

Importance of Gratitude

Gratitude enhances the quality of life and makes existence more worth living. It opens the human heart and carries the urge to give back-to do something good in return, either for the person who helped us or for someone else. It establishes social harmony and creates an environment where everyone is appreciating and providing support to each other. It also improves the quality of personal lives and strengthens the bond with family and friends. Expressing gratitude keeps us happy, healthy and stress-free.

Feeling grateful reminds people of a joyous event, and expressing gratitude to others often strengthens relationships. Gratitude helps people feel more positive emotions, relish good experiences, improve their health, deal with adversity, and build strong relationships. When we are grateful for others, we do not compare ourselves with others based on their financial situation or other factors, we simply appreciate their achievements. Thus, it helps in elevating the feeling of comparison, jealousy and hate. Being grateful also helps people connect to something larger than themselves as individuals — whether to other people, nature, or supreme power.

How to Practise Gratitude

Everyone can benefit from making an effort to practise gratitude in day-to-day life. It can be achieved simply by paying attention to the good things that happen to us. We must appreciate and accept the importance of everything in nature and our surroundings. Also, we should not forget to return the favour at an appropriate time. Whenever possible, we should thank the people around us, who make our lives comfortable, such as washermen, gardeners, security guards, sweepers, delivery men, etc. We should make a habit of thanking God when we wake up in the morning and before sleeping at night.

Gratitude is the best way to return the favour to God, nature, society, friends and relatives for the thousands of good deeds that they do for us.

We hope students must have found this “Essay on Gratitude” useful for their studies. To access more study material and get the latest updates on CBSE/ICSE/State Board/Competitive exams, keep visiting BYJU’S. Also, download the BYJU’S App for interactive study videos.

Frequently asked Questions on Gratitude Essay

How to show gratitude towards others.

You can show gratitude by thanking people who help you and being courteous and friendly. You can iInvite people over for lunch/dinner to thank them for something they did for you. Always listen intently to what others are saying to show appreciation and care.

Why is showing gratitude so important?

Psychologists show that there is a positive impact on the brain and body of people who show gratitude.

What are the benefits of showing gratitude?

Showing gratitude helps in emotional regulation by reducing stress and burnout. It also increases your mental resilience because you are able to build meaningful relations with others.

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