The gift of not having

An easy way to live a resentful life is to focus on what we’ve lost, or what we feel we deserve, or what we don’t have. But once we realize that we already have everything we need, the resentment goes away and turns into gratitude.

Consider this: Maybe what we’ve lost was never ours to keep. Maybe what we feel we deserve is actually just a distraction from what we already have. Maybe what we don’t have is as much of a gift as the things we do.

Let’s focus on what we already have; acknowledge, appreciate, and accept what we’ve lost; and spend as little time as possible (if any at all) on what we think we deserve. The gift of not having can truly be a gift if we choose to receive it.