5 THINGS WE TAKE FOR GRANTED

Let us begin by saying that we’re all guilty of this to some degree. While it’s true that some people are more appreciative of these things, some, not so much especially when they are young and believe the world is their oyster. They do not give any second thoughts to what is available to them. Not that we can fault them because after all, most of these things are readily available! So today we thought we would share with you five of the most common things that most people take for granted.

1

Food and Water

When we get hungry or thirsty, we can simply pull into any fast-food joint or store and get something to drink and grab a quick bite to eat. Or we open our fridges and are spoilt for choice on what to nibble on or what to drink. We visit restaurants and order the best food and what type of bottled water we want to drink. We’re also quite accustomed to having our grocery stores stacked high and deep with a vast variety of purchasing options. Food and water is typically only a few minutes away, even at the worst of times for most of us.

2

Your Health

When we say health, we actually mean many different things aside from illness. These are things we just do without thought every single day. We can walk, we can use our hands, we can speak, we can hear, we can see, we can smell, we can taste. We can think clearly. On top of that, we have various talents that come like second nature to us. The body is an amazing creation and the fact that it operates smoothly most days is still a magnificent mystery to us that far too many of us simply take for granted.

3

Time

This is an interesting concept because most people don’t realize how much they take time for granted until, that is, they get a bit older. As the years go by, you slowly but surely begin to appreciate the value of time and the essence of living. Little things you never thought of when you were younger begin to hold more importance to you. You become aware that these little things of life is what gives most pleasure. Seen it all, been there, worn the T/shirt so things do not excite you as much as they once did. Spirituality far overtakes vanity as the years go by. Age has a way of teaching us all about how precious time is and how quickly it passes by us. Where did all of those years go? That’s a question we hear a lot from

people as they age and mature.

4

Your Significant Other

Not everyone has one but there is an unfortunate kind of complacency that seems to take hold in most relationships that’s born out of familiarity and naturally comes with the passage of time.

The sad reality is that taking your significant other for granted can be emotionally distressing to your partner and potentially devastating to your relationship. You forget to do the things that used to please them because it becomes too much of an effort as you do not see the need to do them anymore. You do not create time for things you can do as a couple. You let yourself go believing the need for some excitement is overrated. You settle into the humdrum of normalcy. Since human nature tends to take us in this direction, we should all be on guard about the downside of taking our companions for granted.

5

Friends and Family

Most people believe that their friends and family will always be there for them and, as a result, these loved ones often aren’t treated with the kindness, love and respect they deserve. There is never enough time in your busy schedule to give them their deserving attention. Never enough hours during the day. And when they complain, they sometimes get the backlash of your irritating side. Sometimes, they are at the bottom of your priority list...just because you know they will always be there. Phone calls owed to them are replace with ‘more important’ calls. When you do find time, they bask in your presence because they have missed you so much. The reality is that these are the very people who we should attend to the most in our lives. They do not judge us and live us as we are...warts and all!

I bet many of you reading this today are guilty of at least one of the above offenses. It doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re a bad or insensitive person if you do. But whether you do it intentionally or not, it still causes problems and creates emotional distance. In my opinion, there’s always a small or large price to pay for taking someone or something for granted.

Even though there’s some comfort in believing that someone or something will always be there for you when wanted or needed, there’s also great danger too. For example, taking the availability of food and water for granted probably won’t present you with many problems in this country. However, taking your significant other or you family members and friends for granted can lead to deeply hurt feelings, personal resentment and possible estrangement.

I hope my message today leaves you with your eyes a bit more open. As that famous line from that Joni Mitchell song so correctly warns: You don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone.